


Party of Five

by Chelsea Frew (chelseafrew)



Series: The Original Mpreg!Harry [2]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Fluff, Graphic Description of Natural Birth, M/M, Mpreg, Mpreg Harry, natural birth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-25
Updated: 2015-07-25
Packaged: 2018-04-11 04:33:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 34,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4421531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chelseafrew/pseuds/Chelsea%20Frew
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Six years after their twin girls were born, Harry and Louis find themselves expecting another bundle of joy! Ups, downs, excitement, and worry follow the news as the family of four prepares to get just a little bit bigger.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Party of Five

**Author's Note:**

> I loved writing mpreg so much for the [One Direction Big Bang ](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/round_three), I decided to try my hand at writing it once again. I figured I might as well just create a sequel to my big bang (and a prequel to my [HL Winter Fic Exchange](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/HL_Winter_Fic_Exchange) piece). :-) I had a blast writing this, and it was great having it to distract me when I had writer's block on other things I was writing.
> 
> My deepest thanks to [Cori Lannam](http://archiveofourown.org/users/corilannam/pseuds/Cori%20Lannam) for the hand-holding and the beta. In addition, she made the last third of this story about 100 times better than the original idea I had. I owe her a great debt for talking through the points of this story with me way more than she probably wanted to. *g* Any errors left are totally mine.
> 
> Enjoy the story! (I love this universe so much, don't be surprised if I play in it some more once I'm done with my other sequel.)

Harry heard the front door slam and knew he had less than about fifteen seconds before he would be besieged by a pair of overtired five-year-olds. He levered himself up out of the supine position he'd been in for several hours and braced himself.

Sure enough, he'd silently counted to about thirteen when Lily came racing into the room, Sophie hot on her tail.

"Daddy!" Lily launched herself at Harry. He only winced a little as he caught her.

Sophie would have none of Lily getting all the attention, and she hurled herself at Harry, too, and instantly Harry's lap was full.

"Daddy, we skated!" Sophie announced happily as Louis made his weary way into the lounge.

Harry smiled over the twins' heads at Louis, and Louis returned his smile. He was visibly tired, but clearly just as happy as the girls.

"You did?" Harry replied as enthusiastically as he could. "I'll bet you were really good at it."

"We were, Daddy," Lily said modestly. "And Papa let us have hot chocolate when we were done skating."

"What lucky girls!" Harry remarked. "I wish I could have gone."

"Are you feeling better, babe?" Louis inquired, moving to sit down next to his family on the sofa.

"Sophie? Lily?" Harry entreated. "Why don’t you girls go to your room and play for a little bit while Papa and I make tea?"

"Okay," the twins answered simultaneously, easily hopping off Harry's lap and running toward the stairs.

Louis inched closer to Harry, tapping his knee gently against his husband's. "How're you feeling, H?"

"Enh. A little better, though still nauseated. I will not be eating tea," Harry said ruefully.

"This has been going on almost a week now," Louis pointed out. "Maybe it's time to call the doctor? Maybe tomorrow?"

"Maybe that should be Dr. Cantor," Harry remarked.

Louis' jaw dropped open. Harry smiled apologetically and reached over to the coffee table and pulled something from in between the pages of a magazine: a thin white stick he handed directly to Louis.

Louis stared at the stick. "You're pregnant?"

Harry sighed. "I think so. This feels exactly the same as the last time, which is why I went right over to Boots as soon you left with the girls this afternoon."

Louis echoed Harry's sigh. "It was my birthday, wasn't it?" Louis vividly recalled the birthday sex--sans condom--Harry had gifted him with.

"I think so. Happy birthday, Lou," he offered weakly. When Louis went to stare at the stick and its results once more, Harry added, "I'm so sorry."

Louis' head immediately shot up, and he looked right at Harry. "No. You're not to say that ever again. This--" he reached a hand over and rested it on Harry's stomach, "--is not something to be sorry for."

Harry smiled at the sentiment. "I just can't believe we did this accidentally again."

Louis shrugged and grinned. "Well, it's not like we weren't planning on more anyway. Guess this was when fate decided on for us. Besides, we did pretty well the last time, and if I do say so myself, we have two amazing children to show for it."

Harry's smile grew wider. "We do."

"Are you okay with the idea of being pregnant again?" Louis asked. "I seem to recall you saying sometime during labour that you didn't want to do this again for a long time. Is five years enough?"

Still smiling, Harry nodded. "It would be nice if it weren't twins this time, though."

Louis chuckled. "Well, we'll just have to keep our fingers crossed, yeah?"

"I'll call Dr. Cantor in the morning," Harry stated.

"At least we don't have a tour planned right now," Louis remarked.

One Direction still recorded and still toured, but they were not nearly as in demand anymore, and their schedule had slowed down considerably. All of the boys were in relationships. Liam and Sophia were married and had a two-year-old son. Zayn and Perrie were married with a baby girl, and Niall had recently met a woman called Fiona with whom he was most smitten. They made sure their work allowed them plenty of time with their families.

Harry offered a sigh of relief at the thought of not being pregnant on a world tour as he had been with Lily and Sophie. "That will make it easier, even if it is twins again."

Screams from upstairs reminded both men that they were not alone in the house.

"Do you want Tea Duty or Twin Duty?" Louis inquired.

Harry pushed himself up off the couch. "You had them all afternoon. I'll take the twins."

"Tea Duty it is." Louis stood up and grabbed Harry's arm before he could move. Harry looked back at his husband questioningly. "I'm so excited we're having a baby."

Harry stepped closer to give Louis a sweet kiss. "Me, too."

Together, they moved out of the lounge--Louis toward the kitchen and the task of the evening meal, and Harry toward the girls' bedroom and the task of stopping a war.

* * *

Dr. Cantor managed to fit them in the very next day, and Uncle Niall gamely accepted babysitting duty. As they had done before, Louis and Harry used the service lift in the back of the building, and a nurse met them and showed them to a private room. She took all of Harry's vitals, along with some blood, then, after sending Harry into the en suite loo to leave a urine sample, left them to await their turn with the doctor.

They only had to wait about twenty minutes before Dr. Cantor knocked the door before coming in. "Mr. Styles! Mr. Tomlinson!" She offered each of them a warm hug before urging them to sit down.

"So, how are those twin girls of yours?" the doctor asked, taking a seat herself on a low stool.

Louis smiled. "They're great. Five going on about sixteen. They certainly keep us on our toes."

Dr. Cantor grinned back at him. "I'm sure. Now, Harry, you think you might be pregnant again?"

Harry nodded. "It's just like last time. Sick all hours of the day and night, can't seem to shake it. Been going on almost a week."

"Well, why don't I go check to see what the nurse has managed to test so far and we'll see what we're working with?" She got up and left the room.

"If I just have a really bad stomach flu, I am going to feel really stupid," Harry commented.

Louis shook his head. "You said it feels just like last time. And the test you took at home was positive. I don't think it's stomach flu."

Dr. Cantor concurred. When she re-entered the room she looked right at Harry and announced, "You're right, you're pregnant. Congratulations!"

"Thank you," Harry and Louis answered over each other.

"Maybe this time I'll be able to help you deliver," the doctor remarked in a wry voice.

Louis and Harry both chuckled.

"Ready to do an ultrasound and see what you're dealing with?" she questioned.

Harry nodded. "Sure."

"Follow me into the next room, then," Dr. Cantor directed.

The couple did as she commanded and followed her into the room where the ultrasound machine was located. Harry hopped up on the examining table and hiked up his jumper, while Louis took the seat right next to Harry.

After checking all the machines she'd be needing, the doctor got out her tube of gel. "You remember this routine?"

"Yeah," Harry replied.

She squeezed the gel onto his stomach, then placed the wand on top to check out what was going on inside.

As she searched, she asked, "Do you think you know when you conceived? As I recall, you remembered exactly last time."

"It was Christmas Eve. My birthday," Louis responded, blushing.

"So--" the doctor appeared to be making some mental calculations, "--about seven weeks ago."

"Sounds right," Harry confirmed.

Dr. Cantor smiled. "There it is." She pointed to her monitor. "Your baby."

"Just one this time?" Harry checked, unable to keep a little hope out of his voice. Louis knew how hard it had been for Harry to carry twins during his first pregnancy, even if he had made it through with flying colours.

"Just one," she concluded. "One very healthy looking baby. Looking just right for almost two months along."

Harry and Louis smiled at each other, and Louis grabbed Harry's hand for a congratulatory squeeze.

"I'd guess you're looking at a due date of about 15th October," Dr. Cantor told them. "Unless, like his or her sisters, this one decides to come early."

"Wouldn't surprise me," Harry said ruefully.

Dr. Cantor studied the monitor for another minute or two before pressing a button to produce a couple ultrasound photos for the happy pair of fathers. After handing them off to Louis, she removed the wand and got a cloth for Harry to clean off with.

"Everything looks great," the doctor informed them. "And since you've been down this road before, I'll just tell you to remember to watch what you eat, don't forget to exercise, and try to keep the stress at the minimum, though I know that last one is tricky when you have young twins at home."

Harry raised his eyebrows and nodded in agreement. "I'll try my best."

"Come back during Week Twelve, and we'll see how things are progressing," she went on to suggest. "Okay?"

"Will do," Louis promised.

Dr. Cantor scribbled something onto her prescription pad and tore off the sheet to hand to Harry. "Some medicine to take care of the nausea and some pre-natal vitamins. I assume you're familiar?"

Harry nodded as he slipped off the exam table. "Yeah, I remember."

"Don't hesitate to call me if there are any problems between now and your twelfth week," the doctor added.

"Thanks so much," Harry said.

"You're very welcome." Dr. Cantor slipped out of the room ahead of the couple. She made her way to treat another patient while Louis and Harry made for the freight elevator once again.

"I'm so relieved everything looks okay," Harry said.

"And relieved it's just one this time?" Louis questioned with a grin.

"I love our girls," Harry told him defensively. "You know that, but carrying twins was not the easiest thing I've ever done. One will hopefully be a little easier."

"I hope so, too." Louis reached out to squeeze Harry's hand before they headed out of the elevator into the parking garage.

As they approached the car, Louis remotely opened the doors, but before climbing in, he looked over the top of the car at Harry. "When do you want to tell everyone?"

Harry shrugged. Last time, they had been under the gun with regard to their timeline, but this time around, they weren't up against any immediate obligations. "I don't know. Maybe we should wait until I get through the first trimester this time. I won't be near showing before then, and we'll have another ultrasound under our belt. What do you think?"

"I think that's a fine plan. The new little peanut can be our secret for now. Well, ours and the girls'. We should tell the girls, yeah?" Louis climbed into the car as Harry did the same, then looked at him expectantly, waiting on Harry's verdict.

"Yeah, we should tell the girls. They'll figure out something's up anyhow." Harry snapped on his seatbelt.

"Are you happy, Harry?" Louis asked as he stuck the key into the ignition. "Ready to do this again?"

"I'm happy," Harry responded brightly. "You?"

"Absolutely. It'll be nice having a baby in the house again. The girls are going to be so excited to be big sisters."

"They'll be excellent big sisters," Harry noted.

Louis started the car, but before he put the car into reverse he said, "By the way, Haz, know what?"

"No, what?"

"Best. Birthday. Present. Ever."

* * *

After they all ate tea and Niall left, Harry and Louis called a family meeting. This wasn't the first such meeting they'd had--the girls were familiar with these times when the four of them got together to discuss things that were important to them as a unit. The last family meeting had been held when they needed to decide how to divide their time during the Christmas holidays.

The girls sat side by side on the couch in the lounge, and Louis and Harry set the two easy chairs opposite the couch and sat down nervously. They each hoped the girls would take the news well, but there was always the chance they would not be happy at no longer being the sole beneficiaries of Harry and Louis' attention.

Lily and Sophie stared at their dads guilelessly, unaware that in about seven to eight months, the family dynamic was going to completely change.

Innocence morphed into worry when Harry and Louis both took a moment to collect their thoughts. "Are we in trouble, Papa?" Lily asked.

"Uncle Niall said he wouldn't tell," Sophie complained.

Louis blinked at them curiously. "Wouldn't tell what?"

"We didn't do nothing," Lily tried to assure them, confirming that something had indeed happened.

"I'm sure you didn't," Louis sighed.

"We can discuss what you didn't do later, but right now we have something else we need to discuss," Harry told them.

"What, Daddy?" Sophie inquired, obviously thrilled to be off the topic of her and her sister's misbehaviour--even if only temporarily.

Harry cleared his throat anxiously. "Well, girls, in October of this year, something very special is going to happen."

"Halloween!" Lily cheered pre-emptively.

"I want to be a princess this year, Daddy," Sophie added.

"And I want to be Batman," Lily informed him.

"Batman?" Louis repeated, aghast at the slight to Marvel. "You are clearly spending way too much time with Uncle Liam."

Lily crossed her arms haughtily. "I love Uncle Liam. And Batman."

"Can we maybe have this argument closer to the actual holiday?" Harry requested, meeting Lily's gaze beseechingly.

"All right, Daddy," Lily agreed, perhaps still aware that she and Sophie might yet be in trouble for whatever it was they'd done under Niall's care.

"We're not talking about Halloween, anyhow," Louis told them. "We're talking about something else. Something even more special."

Lily and Sophie looked from Louis to Harry and back, clearly trying to suss out what the big news was. They looked half-concerned and half-excited.

"In October, you two are going to be…," Harry paused a moment for effect, "...big sisters."

It took each of the twins a few seconds to process this information.

Sophie recovered first. "We're having a baby sister?"

"Or brother," Louis confirmed. "We don't know which yet."

"Where is the baby now?" Lily wondered aloud.

Harry rested a hand on his stomach. "Inside here, just like you were before you were born."

Sophie immediately jumped up off the couch and reached out her little hand. "Can I feel the baby, Daddy?"

"Me, too." Lily parked herself right next to her sister.

Harry smiled. "The baby's too small for you to feel anything right now. In about three months he or she will be big enough, and you'll be able to feel them kick."

The girls looked a little disappointed, but they didn't press the issue.

"So, are you excited, girls?" Louis inquired.

Lily and Sophie traded a look before they beamed back at Louis, nodding enthusiastically.

"Lily. Sophie." Harry got their attention again, giving them a serious look. "There's one more thing. One really important thing."

"What, Daddy?" Lily questioned.

"No one else knows about the baby but you two, Papa, and me," Harry stated. "We want to keep it a secret just between us for a little while, okay?"

"Why?" Sophie asked, confused.

"Like I just told you, the baby is very, very small right now, and we want to wait until it's a little bit bigger before we tell anybody else it's coming," Harry explained.

"Do you guys think you can help us keep the baby a secret?" Louis wanted to know.

Both girls nodded vehemently. Sophie added, "We can keep secrets good."

"Excellent!" Louis cheered. "I knew we could count on you two."

They traded high fives all the way around before Harry said, "Hey, girls, do you want to see the baby's first picture?"

"Yes!" they cried excitedly.

Harry got up and retrieved the ultrasound photos from where he'd left them in his coat pocket, then spent the next few minutes pointing out every little detail of their upcoming addition to two girls who were going to be the best big sisters ever.

* * *

"I want it to be a sister!" That was Sophie.

"I want it to be a brother," Lily countered.

Harry and Louis, horrified at the words floating toward the front door from the lounge, swiftly finished toeing off their shoes and pulling off their coats and raced toward their daughters' voices.

They skidded into the lounge in time to hear Niall assuring them, "Well, whatever it is, you two are going to be great big sisters."

Louis stopped moving at the exact same time as Harry. They both took in the scene in front of them.

The girls were both sitting on Niall's lap staring at the screen of Harry's computer where Skype happily displayed Anne's smiling face.

Harry let out a groan, and Niall and the twins turned their heads to look up at him.

"Harry?" Anne's voice came through the laptop speakers. "Is that you, baby?"

Harry and Louis exchanged a look of resignation and moved as one to stand behind the sofa, bending down until they were in the little frame in the corner right over the twins' heads.

"Hi, Mum," Harry greeted her.

"The girls just told me the news!" she exclaimed. "I'm so excited for all of you."

Harry sighed and smiled. "Thanks." 

"Are you feeling okay?" Anne questioned.

"Sick all hours of the day, just like with these rascals, but otherwise I'm fine," he told her.

"Good. Don't overdo it, okay?"

"Don't worry, I won't." After a beat, he went on, "Mum, can we all call you tomorrow? It's time for us to have tea."

"Sure," Anne agreed. "Congratulations again!"

"Thanks," Harry repeated just before his mother ended the call.

Louis walked around to face Lily, Sophie, and Niall. "Girls? Did you forget something?"

"What, Papa?" Lily asked, the very picture of innocence.

Louis knew better, and he stared her down until she squirmed uncomfortably in Niall's lap. "What did Daddy and I tell you about the baby? Just yesterday, in fact."

She hesitated for another few moments before answering softly, "That it was supposed to be a secret."

Niall was unable to keep from snorting and chuckling.

Harry sidled up to Louis and regarded Niall wearily. "What, Ni?"

Niall needed a second to compose himself before saying, "You decided that two five-year-olds were going to be able to keep a secret that big for longer than, say, ten minutes?"

Harry and Louis both had the grace to blush at Niall's words.

"Congrats, by the way," Niall added. "Very exciting news!"

Louis closed his eyes for a second to brace himself for the response, then inquired, "How many people did you text, Niall?"

"Just Liam and Zayn," Niall replied.

Louis exhaled in relief. "Okay, not too much out of control then."

"We should probably go ahead and call your mum, Lou," Harry pointed out. "If we don't get to her soon, my mum will tell her for us."

"Yay!" Lily piped up. "We get to speak to Granny Jay today, too?"

"Go ahead and try to Skype her," Louis directed before he and Harry took up posts behind the sofa again.

Lily knew exactly where to tap the mouse to call Jay, and miracle of miracles, she answered right away.

"Well, if it isn't my favourite set of twins that I didn't give birth to!" Jay exclaimed.

"Hi, Granny!" the girls greeted her enthusiastically.

"Hi, Mum," Louis jumped in, waving. "We're glad we caught you."

"If you had waited a couple more minutes, you wouldn't have. I was just checking my e-mail, then I was going to run out to do some shopping," she remarked. "Hi, Harry. Hi, Niall."

"Hi," Harry and Niall chorused.

"So, what's up?" Jay wanted to know.

A moment of silence followed her question as they hadn't really planned this call out. Harry finally said, "Go ahead, girls. Tell Granny our news."

"We're going to be big sisters!" Lily and Sophie announced in perfect harmony, huge grins on their faces. Lily added, "Daddy is having a baby."

Jay squealed and clapped a hand over her mouth. A couple seconds later she removed it to say, "That's so exciting! When?"

"October," Sophie told her.

"Well, congratulations!" Jay wished them. Just like Anne had, she asked, "So, Harry, how are you feeling?"

"Same as last time, but I'm doing okay," he assured her. "We saw the doctor yesterday and everything looks good."

"Just one this time?" she checked.

Harry nodded. "Just one."

"I'm so happy for all of you," Jay said, smiling widely. "I already can't wait to meet the new little one."

"We can't either," Louis concurred.

A loud scream came over the speakers just then. Jay immediately scrunched her face against the noise. "Yikes! Sounds like Doris and Ernie are fighting over the PlayStation again. I've got to go. Goodbye, loves!"

"Bye, Granny!" the twins called as Louis and Harry both called out, "Bye, Mum."

When the call was ended, Harry cleared his throat. "Okay, you two stinkers. Go wash up. Papa, Uncle Niall, and I are going to sort out some tea."

Lily and Sophie jumped off of Niall's lap and headed off to do Harry's bidding.

"So," Niall began. "Nando's? My treat?"

Harry collapsed onto the couch right next to his bandmate. It had been a long afternoon of meetings about his and Louis' shared music publishing business, and it would be lovely not to have to do any cooking. "Sure. Sounds good to me."

Niall patted Harry's thigh. "Leave it to me. Back in a flash." He was up and slipping on his shoes instantly.

Harry pulled his phone from his pocket and clicked on his text alerts. "I have both Liam and Zayn."

Louis likewise examined his mobile. "Me, too."

"I'll take Li, you take Zayn?" Harry suggested.

Louis sighed. "So much for keeping it a secret, eh?"

"Who would have guessed that five-year-olds might not be able to keep their mouths shut?" Harry offered wryly.

With a smirk, Louis admitted, "Maybe not our best idea ever."

"Better luck next time?"

"Next time?" Harry parroted. "Can we perhaps get through this time first?"

Louis reached over and laid a gentle hand over Harry's still-flat stomach. "If you insist."

"I do."

The sound of small footsteps running through the hallway echoed through the house. "I think I hear the little stool pigeons now. Better get texting." He raised his phone to open up Zayn's text.

Harry did the same and in answer to Liam's **Is it true? Am I going to be an uncle again???** he responded with a quick **It's true. October.**

He sent the text just in time, since mere seconds later, he had a lapful of identical twins.

"Daddy, Daddy!" Sophie cried. "Can we feel the baby today?" She didn't wait for permission before sticking her hand right on Harry's belly. Lily followed suit without a word.

Harry laughed. "Not today, girls. It will probably be summer before you can feel the baby."

"Summer?" Lily repeated, clearly horrified. "But that's ages away, Daddy."

"You'll just have to be patient," Harry told her seriously.

"Yeah, because they proved just a little bit ago that patience is their strong suit," Louis joked.

Sophie and Lily sent confused looks in their Papa's direction, sensing they should be insulted.

"Since nothing is happening on the baby kicking front right now," Harry started. "Why don't we go get out what we need for tea? Uncle Niall's gone to get Nando's."

"Yay Nando's!" the girls chirped, throwing themselves off Harry's lap and racing toward the kitchen.

Harry glanced at Louis wearily. "What was that Dr. Cantor said about keeping my stress level low?"

Louis shot him a look of sympathy. "Yeah. Good luck with that."

* * *

After a week, the twins grew wildly impatient with their not-yet-born sibling. No matter how many times Harry reminded them that it would be a long, long time before they could see or feel evidence that there was, indeed, a baby in his belly, he still woke up just about every morning to Lily and Sophie both resting a hand on his stomach, whispering to the baby to play.

The disappointment of not getting any action from the baby caused Lily and Sophie to become snippy with each other and with Louis and Harry, and this in turn caused Harry's stress level to spike despite his obstetrician's warnings.

Harry was just entering his ninth week of pregnancy on a morning when Louis left early to go to a writing session with Liam and someone Harry's baby brain forgot the name of. He woke briefly when Louis leaned over to kiss him goodbye, then again later to the sound of Lily and Sophie arguing over his still-flat tummy.

"I get to hold her first," Sophie was declaring.

"It's not even going to be a girl," Lily countered hotly. "It's going to be a boy."

"No, it's not," Sophie argued.

"Yes, it is," Lily bounced back.

"Is not," Sophie insisted in the way only small children can.

The sound of a little slap echoed through the room, followed by a wail from Sophie.

Wearily, Harry cracked open his eyes to regard his twin girls. Lily sat with a smug smile on her face that greatly resembled the look on Louis' face when he thought he'd gotten his way. Sophie was holding her right cheek with one hand, tears rolling down her face.

With a sigh, Harry levered himself into an upright position. "Lily, did you just hit your sister?" he inquired, disappointment dripping off every word.

The smile on Lily's face dimmed just a bit as Sophie confirmed, "Yes, she did."

"Are you okay, Sophie?" Harry checked, reaching for Sophie's hand and pulling it away so he could see the injury. Thankfully, all she had was a small red area on her cheek. Nothing major.

"It hurted, Daddy," Sophie said, milking the incident for as much sympathy as she could.

Harry nodded sagely. "I'll bet it did." He regarded a slightly more contrite Lily. "Lil, you know better. We don't solve our problems with each other by hitting. Apologise, please."

"Fine." Reluctantly, she looked at her sister. "I'm sorry."

"Next time, you might want to make it sound like you mean it," Harry informed her. "For now, you, Lily, are going to your room, while Sophie and I start breakfast."

"I want to cook, too, Daddy!" Lily protested.

"Well, you should have thought of that before you hit Sophie."

As Harry pushed back on the duvet to climb out of bed, a wave of nausea washed over him, and he hurried the rest of the way out of bed--doing his best not to injure either of the girls in his haste--and into the en suite, hurling the meagre contents of his stomach into the toilet.

When the bout of morning sickness was over, Harry flushed the toilet and stood to rinse out his mouth. When he turned back toward the door, he discovered two very worried little girls hovering just outside the washroom.

"Daddy, are you okay?" Lily asked in a quiet voice.

They had tried as much as possible to downplay Harry's ongoing morning/afternoon/evening sickness so as not to worry the twins, but that time appeared to be over.

"I'm fine, sweetheart," he assured her.

"Did you eat something bad?" Sophie posed her own question.

Harry shook his head.

"Did we make you sick by fighting?" The look on Lily's face was one of pure guilt.

"Of course not!" Harry swiftly replied. Suddenly, he was very tired again. "Want to come back to bed with me for just a little while?"

"Yes!" the girls chorused, never ones to turn down the offer of some cuddles with one of their dads.

Harry wasted no time climbing back into bed, and Lily and Sophie clambered up next to him, one on either side. Harry shifted them so they were all reclined on the pillows at the head of the bed, then he reached down for the duvet and the three of them snuggled under it.

"You're sick a lot, Daddy," Sophie noted as soon as they were all comfortable. "You should see a doctor."

"That's a good idea, Soph," Harry told her, "but I actually already know what the problem is."

"What?"

Harry pulled in a deep breath. "It's the baby. My body's just getting used to having another little person inside, and sometimes it makes me sick."

"Bad baby!" Lily chastised, patting at Harry's stomach more gently than he sensed she wanted to.

Harry shook his head. "No, no. It's not the baby's fault. When he or she gets a little bit bigger, I'll feel a lot better. I was sick when you two were inside my tummy, too."

"We made you sick?" Sophie inquired.

"Not for too long," Harry responded. "But yes. That's how Papa and I found out you were coming, actually. I was getting sick a lot, and Papa said just what you did, Sophie, that I should go to the doctor. So I did, and she told me that you two were growing right where your brother or sister is now."

"We're sorry we made you sick, Daddy," Lily apologised needlessly.

"You don't have to be sorry. It was just your way of letting Papa and I know you were there."

"We're sorry we were fighting, too," Lily went on to add, her voice laden with sincerity.

Harry smiled down at her. He could absolutely not love his girls any more than he did. "Thank you for apologising like you meant it."

"You're welcome," she returned in a prim tone that was--again--all Louis.

"So, what do you two think?" Harry asked. "A quick nap before breakfast? See if we can calm this baby down?"

Both of the twins nodded, immediately snuggling in close to Harry. They were all asleep in no time.

* * *

As the weather got warmer, and as spring got closer and closer, the twins became much less obsessed with trying to get their unborn sibling to get with their designated program. This gave both Harry and Louis a little breather, and happily decreased Harry's stress level.

Harry made it through his Week Twelve appointment with not a single problem. Dr. Cantor said the baby was looking healthy, and she was pleased with all of Harry's stats. They even got to hear the baby's heartbeat. It was just as magical to hear it as it had been the first time they'd heard the twins' heartbeats. Dr. Cantor told them the heart sounded strong, and that the baby was right on target for this stage of growth.

Even though the doctor had no concerns, Harry did. He wasn't showing yet, and he had been by this time the last time he had been pregnant. Dr. Cantor had assured him that everything was fine. He had only one baby growing inside him this time, so it might take a little longer for his stomach to pop. She predicted it wouldn't be too long, though, maybe just another week or two, if he could just hang in there.

Dr. Cantor's prediction was spot on. On the weekend between his thirteenth and fourteenth weeks, Harry woke up to the sensation of tiny fingers poking at his belly. He grinned to himself before slowly blinking open his eyes.

The twins stood close together on Harry's side of his and Louis' bed. When they didn’t notice he was awake, he was able to observe that they were taking turns poking at Harry's stomach. Very diplomatic for two almost-six-year-old girls.

Lily was the first to catch on to the fact that the object of their focus was no longer asleep, and she elbowed her sister's side to read Sophie in. They both turned vaguely guilty eyes on him.

Harry narrowed his own eyes. "What are you two doing?"

"Look, Daddy. Baby's here," Sophie answered, poking once more at Harry's tummy.

Harry raised himself up on his elbows to get a good look, noticing as he did so that Louis was stirring at his side.

It did not take Harry long to see what the girls were so fascinated by. Resting just above the waistband of his boxers was a very definite bump--finally.

"Well, there it is," Harry agreed, caressing the new little swell. "The baby wanted to be sure to be here in time for your birthday."

"Did I hear the word 'birthday'?" came a question from Louis' side of the bed. "Who's having a birthday?"

"We are, Papa!" Lily chirped. "In nine days!"

"Nine days?" Louis repeated, sitting up to smile at the twins. "You're having a birthday in nine days?"

Lily and Sophie both nodded vigorously.

"Did you know about this, Harry?" Louis asked in his best mock serious tone.

Harry levered himself up with his elbows until he and Louis were sitting side by side against the pillows between them and their headboard. He paused for a moment and put his finger up to his lips, playacting deep thought. "I don't know, Lou. I'm pretty sure I didn't give them permission to have another birthday."

"Daddy, we don't need permission," Lily informed him, perfectly serious, unlike her papa. "We're going to be six!"

"Six?" Harry and Louis simultaneously cried.

The girls nodded, giggling.

"Okay, then," Louis said. "We'll definitely have to do something special, then, if you're going to insist on turning six."

"Look, Papa," Sophie urged, pointing to Harry's newly-popped bump. "The baby came in time for our birthday."

Louis checked Harry's belly out and grinned. "So they have." Just as Harry had, he reached out a hand to caress the small bulge. "Welcome to the party, Peanut."

Sophie frowned. "It is not a peanut. It is a baby, Papa."

Louis chuckled. "It's just a nickname, Soph."

Sophie relaxed. "Okay."

"So, since we're all awake now," Harry remarked, "shall we celebrate the baby's appearance with some breakfast?"

In answer, the girls raced toward the bedroom door.

"I'm cracking the eggs!" Lily cried.

"I'm making the toast!" Sophie declared.

The sound of little feet thundering down the stairs echoed through the house.

Louis laughed. "You'd better get down there before they try to make the food by themselves."

Harry nodded, then put his hand on the evidence that a third small one was on the way.

Louis placed his own hand over Harry's. "I loved this part."

Harry smiled over at his husband. "I know. Me, too."

"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy," came the call of little girl voices from the bottom of the stairs. "Come on, Daddy!"

Louis pressed a quick kiss to Harry's cheek. "Go. I'll be down in a few."

With a smile, Harry threw the duvet back, and he and his baby bump made their way downstairs.

* * *

They had a big decision to make before Harry's Week Sixteen ultrasound: whether or not to find out the gender of the baby.

Niall offered--as he so often did, bless him--to babysit so Harry and Louis could go out to dinner and talk over what they wanted to do. The girls were beside-themselves excited. They loved all their uncles, but Uncle Niall was their not-so-secret favourite. He had promised them to be the most fun before they were even born, and he had not disappointed.

Harry made Niall promise not to feed them too much sugar and to limit the twins' time in front of the television, then he and Louis took off for dinner at a local Italian place they both loved.

After they were safely ensconced at a cosy corner table with a glass of wine for Louis and a glass of water for Harry, Harry said, "You know Lily and Sophie will be up all night after spending a couple hours with Niall, right?"

Louis chuckled. "I am sure he spirited in all their favourite sweets, and he'll let them watch something scary on the telly. He's incorrigible."

"Exactly why they love him so much," Harry remarked.

"Next time, we should ask Gemma," Louis proposed.

"Less sweets and scary movies," Harry agreed. He went on to add, "More begging for makeup and designer clothes, though."

"Good point."

The waitress came by at this point to take their order, and once she was done, they began the conversation which was the purpose of this particular outing.

"So…tomorrow's ultrasound," Harry began.

"Right." Louis took a sip of his wine. "So, what do you want to do?"

Harry paused for just a moment before he answered, "I've been thinking about it, and I'm kind of leaning toward not finding out this time."

Louis raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Really?"

Harry nodded.

"Why?"

"I just think it would be nice to have it be a surprise," Harry explained. "What do you think?"

"I'm really surprised you're willing to deliberately not know something for the next six months."

"Won't be easy," Harry allowed. "But I think it would be fun for the girls and keep them excited about whatever the baby may be. One of them is going to be pretty upset either way, but if they don't know what it is until the baby's born, I think it won't matter then. They'll just be excited to have the baby here."

"Another good point."

Harry grinned. "Thank you. So, what do you think?"

Louis smiled back at him fondly. "I think I'm okay with whatever you want. Just like last time, you're doing all the work here, so I'm happy to let this be your decision."

"You can always find out for yourself, if you really want to know," Harry said magnanimously.

Louis shook his head. "Not a chance. We're in this together. I'll find out when you do."

Harry reached a hand out for Louis' across the table. "Then a secret it will be."

"At least we're good at secrets," Louis joked.

"True."

Their appetizer arrived just then, and as they dug into the fried mozzarella sticks, Louis asked, "So, we've been pretty busy the last couple weeks. How are you feeling?"

Harry shrugged. "Good. Thank goodness the morning sickness is mostly over."

"It certainly doesn't seem to be the funnest part of being pregnant," Louis observed sympathetically.

"Isn't. It's nice to be hungry again." Harry took a deliberate bite of a cheese stick.

"I'll bet." Louis dipped his own stick in some marinara sauce. "Are you still excited about having a baby in the house again? I am. I miss having a baby around to cuddle. And I think it's going to be really good for the girls to have another kid around."

"I am," Harry confirmed. "I'm kind of excited that it's just one this time, too. I'm hoping it'll seem like a walk in the park when compared to two tiny ones."

"Don't jinx it!" Louis implored. "We could get ourselves the most cranky of cranky babies, and then it won't matter that it's just one."

"That's an excellent point. I'll knock wood, then." And Harry did just that on the edge of the table. Then he gasped as if remembering something important. "Hey, did they tell you what they want to name the baby?" 

"No," Louis responded, clearly wounded that he hadn't been privy to this nugget of information.

At that point, the waiter brought over their main courses, so the conversation had to be put on pause long enough for their plates to all be sorted.

They each took an experimental bite of their entrée--ravioli for Harry and fettuccini for Louis--before Louis prompted Harry to continue. "So, what do our little monsters want to name the baby?"

"Well, turns out that when we left them with Liam and Niall last week so we could go on that interview, our bandmates decided to introduce them to _The Lego Movie_ ," Harry reported.

"Great movie," Louis interjected, picking up his glass of wine.

"I'm glad you think so, since if the twins have their way, their little sister will be Wyldstyle or their little brother will be Batman." Harry presented this information in his patented dry fashion.

Louis nearly choked on the sip of wine he had unwisely chosen to take while Harry was speaking. He coughed a few times before chuckling. "Wyldstyle Tomlinson-Styles. Has quite a ring to it."

"I'm kinda hoping it's a boy. Batman is a wicked cool name," Harry returned, grinning. "Although Liam would kill us for using it before he and Sophia could use it for themselves for Boy Number Two."

"I think maybe we should not trust our six-year-olds to name the baby," Louis suggested. "Not purely on their own, in any case."

Harry nodded. "Agreed."

"Now, I don't know about you, but I am kind of thrilled about having Italian food in front of me that isn't spaghetti and meatballs," Louis stated. The twins had not yet developed a taste for Italian beyond the most traditional of meals. Any time Harry tried to cook an alternate type of pasta, both girls turned their noses up.

Harry looked down at his ravioli with a smile. "I hadn't even thought of that. You're right. We should dig in."

"Bet I can finish first," Louis proclaimed, poising his fork for an attack on his pasta.

"You're on," Harry accepted, wielding his own utensil. "But don't forget…. I'm eating for two."

Louis lost the bet.

* * *

Though Harry and Louis were both content with their decision to keep the gender of their upcoming addition a secret, there was literally no one else in their lives who agreed that this was a super idea.

Their mums were disappointed that they wouldn't be able to buy specific cute things for their new grandbaby until after he or she had arrived. Louis and Harry assured them that the baby wouldn't know any different, and Jay and Anne could wait; they weren't budging.

Liam, Zayn, and Niall thought it was ridiculous to wait. Liam insisted that no one waited until the birth these days, while Zayn rolled his eyes and declared that Harry and Louis were too twee for words. And Niall…. Niall just said he didn't like surprises. He should get to know as soon as he could whether he was to have another niece or another nephew (though he did note that any baby boy Harry and Louis had could not be as cute as Theo).

Finally, Lily and Sophie were practically apoplectic when their fathers announced that they wouldn't know whether they had a brother or a sister until October. They begged and pleaded with Harry and Louis to change their minds. The girls were awfully cute as they made their case--they "neeeeeded" to know to "plan things"--but Harry and Louis remained firm and reminded the twins that patience was a virtue. A virtue they definitely needed to practice.

The actual Week Sixteen exam went swimmingly. Harry was excited to show Dr. Cantor that, just as she'd predicted, he was now showing. After offering congratulations, she lifted her ultrasound wand over the gel she'd squirted onto the swell of Harry's stomach in anticipation of doing the monthly scan.

"So," the doctor began, "have you gentlemen decided what you want to do regarding finding out the gender?"

Louis gave Harry a slight nod, giving Harry permission to say, "We've decided not to find out."

The doctor raised her eyebrows. "A surprise baby this time."

Harry nodded. "We thought it would be more fun, especially for the twins."

"Absolutely," Dr. Cantor agreed. "I've had many parents decide to keep it secret, and they all have a lot of fun with it. Good for you. I'll make a note in your file that no one is to reveal the gender to you." She typed something quickly into her computer.

"Thanks," Louis said, reaching for Harry's hand and squeezing tight.

"Ready to scan, then?" the doctor checked, smiling widely.

Louis and Harry both nodded vigorously.

"Looking good, boys," she told them after she'd found what she was looking for in Harry's belly. "Baby is just the right size, just about the same size as an avocado." 

"Very healthy," Louis quipped, earning himself a small wrist slap from his husband.

Dr. Cantor pointed to a light spot on the monitor. "There's your little one right there."

Harry and Louis zeroed in on the area she was pointing to. "So tiny!" Harry exclaimed.

"Won't stay that way," she assured him before continuing, "Would you like to hear the heartbeat again?"

"Yes, please," Harry answered before Louis could have a chance to make a joke about stupid questions.

It took the doctor a moment, but she eventually found the sweet spot she was looking for. Soon the sound of a speedy heartbeat filled the room.

Harry and Louis grinned at each other.

"It sounds even stronger this time," Harry commented, awed.

Dr. Cantor nodded. "The baby's growing bigger and stronger every day. This sounds perfect. Right on track for where baby should be."

"You still think October?" Harry checked.

"Yes," she replied. "You're less likely to be early with one baby than you were when you had the twins."

Harry heaved a small sigh of relief. "Being early was a little stressful."

Dr. Cantor grinned at his assertion. "How are those girls doing these days?"

Louis grinned back at her. "They're great. Full of energy. They're so excited about getting to be big sisters."

"I'll bet. You need to bring them to one of your appointments," she suggested.

"They would love that," Harry said. "At some point no sitter, then."

"Excellent. Any other questions today?"

Harry and Louis both took a moment to contemplate whether or not they had anything else to ask at this time, then they both ended up shaking their heads.

"Then I will just print you out some photos and you can get on with your day." While she did what she needed to print a few photos of their little one, Harry wiped the gel off his small bump and sat up in preparation for leaving.

As she handed off the photos to Harry, Dr. Cantor told him, "Remember to watch that stress level, eat healthy, exercise, all that wonderful stuff."

Harry nodded. "I will."

"Good. I'll see you back here in a month, then, and at some point with your gorgeous little girls."

"Absolutely," Louis assured her, taking the photos from Harry and pocketing them so Harry could jump off the exam table.

As they walked toward the back exit--more habit than necessity at this point--Louis asked, "Regretting not finding out whether it's a boy or a girl?"

Harry shook his head. "No. Thought I might once we were in there and we could find out if we wanted, but no. I'm glad we're waiting."

"Me, too," Louis agreed. "The girls are going to be so unhappy when we get home and didn't change our minds."

"You're probably right," Harry said. "Maybe we should stop at Tesco for some ice cream."

"Are you talking about trying to bribe our girls not to be mad at us?"

Harry stepped off the lift and turned to face Louis as he walked off. "Absolutely. Any objections?"

"Absolutely not."

* * *

When Harry had been pregnant with the twins, they had shared the news with the world at large via a morning breakfast show. They decided they wanted to do things a little differently this time, and they wanted to have Lily and Sophie participate in the reveal. This was just as big a life change for them as it was for their fathers.

Louis called a family meeting so they could decide the best way to let everyone know the Tomlinson-Styles family was expanding by one. It was Week Eighteen, and Harry's stomach had grown just enough that it wouldn't be long before he couldn't hide it anymore.

The girls had actually seen a recording of the interview where Harry and Louis had announced both their relationship and Harry's pregnancy, so the two men had no sooner explained to the twins that they needed to figure out how to share the news about the new baby than Lily piped up, "We can go on telly! Sophie and me can be interned!"

"Interviewed," Harry gently corrected. "And it's Sophie and I, not Sophie and me."

"Not you and Sophie," Lily scoffed, scrunching up the nose she'd inherited from the Styles side of the family. "Me and Sophie."

Harry chuckled. "Okay, then. That's a good idea. Louis, are you recording these ideas?"

Louis held up the pad of paper he'd brought to the meeting. "Number one on the list: Miss Lily and Miss Sophie intern on the news."

Harry let out another chuckle before becoming more serious again. "What do you think, Soph?"

Sophie thought about his question carefully for a moment before suggesting, "We could write a song about the baby."

"That's a terrific idea, Sophie," Louis told her, adding it to his list. "Harry, what are your thoughts?"

"Hm. It had crossed my mind that we could think about doing a Vine or some kind of video."

"It's too bad it's not near Halloween or we could steal Tom and Gi's pumpkin carving idea," Louis said, referencing the McFly singer and his wife's video announcement back when they had been expecting their first son, Buzz.

"That would have been cool," Harry agreed. "I'll bet we could do something equally cool, though. What about you?"

"We could put something up on Instagram," Louis replied. "Simple, but effective."

Harry nodded thoughtfully. "The fans do love the Instagram."

They were all silent a moment to think more about the best way to divulge their news.

Louis was scrolling on his phone when he exclaimed, "I've got it!"

Three pairs of eyes gazed at him expectantly. "Look." He held up his phone for Harry, Lily, and Sophie to see.

The photo was of a pregnant woman with her two kids--one boy and one girl who weren't far in age from the twins. On her small baby bump--not far in size from Harry's--was a very creative rendering of what the baby would look like when it was born. It was very clear the kids were the artists.

"What do you think?" Louis asked, eyebrows raised.

"Oooh, Papa, can we?" Sophie turned pleading green eyes on him.

"Please, Daddy?" Lily joined in the appeal to be allowed to paint on his belly.

Harry grinned. "I think it's a great idea. You two are such great artists. I know you will create a beautiful picture of your baby brother or sister."

"Yay!" the twins cheered.

"We'll just need washable paint and some brushes," Louis surmised.

"How about a chalkboard to write a message on?" Harry suggested.

Louis nodded, then smiled widely. "I have one other idea, but I'll keep it a secret until I see if I can make it happen."

"So, who wants to go shopping?" Harry inquired.

"We do," the girls spoke as one yet again, a common occurrence ever since they were very small.

"Do you want to take Lil and Soph to Hobbycraft while I go in search of my secret surprise?" Louis questioned his husband.

"Sure." Harry rose from his seat on the couch. "I just need to go find a slightly looser jumper, and we're all set to go."

"Girls, go find your shoes," Louis ordered, standing up as well. "Let's get this show on the road!"

It did not take long for everyone to be ready. The girls wore matching sandals that looked pretty with their sundresses, and Harry had changed into a thin black jumper that worked well to mask his growing stomach.

"Meet you back here when you're done shopping?" Louis checked.

"Yep."

Harry and the girls piled into the Range Rover while Louis took the smaller Audi out.

It did not take long at Hobbycraft to get all the things they needed for their project. Harry let the twins pick the colours they wanted to use, and they picked up pastel-coloured chalk and a blackboard, along with brushes of varying sizes.

They beat Louis home by an hour. Harry had Lily and Sophie change into clothes they could get paint all over--switching himself into a t-shirt and some joggers--then let them play with the PlayStation until Louis reappeared.

"Mission accomplished?" Harry wondered aloud as Louis entered the lounge.

Louis nodded vigorously. "Indeed."

"Okay, then, what's the plan?"

"Maybe we should do the painting in the kitchen," Louis said. "It'll be easier to clean up any spills there."

"That makes sense."

"And I'll video the whole thing. We can edit everything together to post to Instagram."

"Sounds perfect," Harry declared, standing up from his seat on the couch. "Ready to get started, girls?"

"Yes!" they replied together, racing ahead of their fathers into the kitchen.

Harry grabbed the bags they'd brought home from Hobbycraft and trailed the twins into the kitchen.

Lily and Sophie helped Louis spread newspaper out on the kitchen tile, then Louis placed a chair from the breakfast table in the middle of the newspaper at the same time as Harry stripped off his Rolling Stones t-shirt.

Louis helped the girls prepare the paints, then let them loose on Harry's belly, filming them on his phone all the while.

The twins giggled as they painted the cutest baby on their daddy's tummy, surrounding it with hearts, stars, a rainbow, a dog, and a cat (despite the fact that they had neither a dog nor a cat). They labelled their drawing "Peanot Babey," curving the words over the butterfly tattoo on Harry's abdomen.

When they proclaimed their art complete, Harry used the coloured chalk they'd purchased to write on the blackboard. It read, "#TomlinsonStylesBaby arriving October 2021."

Louis stopped filming to retrieve what he had bought during his solo shopping expedition. The girls were wildly excited to put on the shirts Louis had purchased.

For the final shot of the video, they returned to the lounge, where Harry carefully sat down so as not to get any paint on the couch or mess up the girls' art, and Lily and Sophie sat on either side of him, Lily holding the blackboard up, Sophie proudly pointing to the words on her t-shirt, "Best Big Sister Ever," identical to the shirt Lily wore.

Later that night, Louis edited the footage together and posted it to Instagram. "#TomlinsonStyles Baby" began trending almost immediately.

* * *

By the time Week Twenty rolled around, the girls were growing mighty impatient with their as-yet-unborn sibling. It was the middle of May, and as far as Lily and Sophie were concerned, it was summer, and Harry had promised them that they would be able to feel the baby kick when it was summer.

There was no question, at this point, that there was a baby in Harry's belly. His middle was nice and round, though not as big as it had been when he'd been twenty weeks into carrying the twins. Exactly like last time, though, this baby loved music more than just about any other sound. The first time he felt the baby move was when he, Louis, and the girls were singing in the car as they drove north to visit Harry's parents.

Harry stopped singing right in the middle of a chorus of "What Makes You Beautiful"--the girls' unashamed favourite in all of One Direction's catalogue--and put his hand on the side of his stomach.

Though driving, Louis noticed Harry's actions, and he grinned widely. "Another music lover?"

Harry nodded as Louis reached his left hand out for Harry to press in just the right place. "Can you feel it?"

Louis split his attention between the road and the taut skin of Harry's baby bump. "Keep singing, girls," he urged them.

Lily and Sophie hadn't quite yet figured out what was going on in the front seat, but they were happy to oblige when they thought the attention was still on them. As soon as the girls started the song up again, the baby began kicking. "There," Harry said. "Can you feel it?"

Louis shook his head and pouted. "Nothing yet. Guess I'll just have to be patient a little longer."

Their eagle-eyed six-year-olds spotted their papa's hand on their daddy's belly. "Is the baby moving, Daddy?" Lily asked.

"It is," Harry confirmed. "The baby loved hearing you sing so much, it began to dance."

"I want to feel!" Sophie demanded, unbuckling her seat belt and snaking her hand in between the front seats, aiming for Harry's stomach.

"Me, too!" Lily stuck her hand out right next to her sister's.

Louis graciously removed his hand--returning it to the steering wheel--and Harry guided the twins' hands to the spot where the baby had just been kicking.

"I can't feel anything," Lily complained instantly.

"Me, neither," Sophie declared sadly.

"Try singing again," Harry suggested. "That's why the baby started kicking in the first place."

Lily and Sophie gamely launched into the chorus of "Best Song Ever," their second favourite One Direction tune. Dutifully, the baby kicked at the side of Harry's bump.

It wasn't quite strong enough for the twins to feel it, though.

"The baby doesn't like us," Sophie decided, her pout fairly identical to her papa's. She flopped back into the back seat and crossed her little arms.

"Why won't it kick us, Daddy?" Lily asked.

"It's still very tiny, girls," Harry explained gently. "I know the baby loves you already. I didn't feel any kicking until you were singing today. The bigger the baby gets, the stronger it will be, and then you'll be able to feel it."

"Promise, Daddy?" Lily requested.

"I promise, Lilypad." Harry turned to give her a comforting smile. "Now you two need to fasten your seat belts again. We've still got a little time before we get to Grandma Anne's."

The girls complied, but it was clear they were not happy. As Harry checked out their sad faces in the rear view mirror, he told them, "Remember I told you that it would be summer before you could feel the baby?"

Lily and Sophie both nodded.

"Do you remember when summer starts?" Harry went on to ask them.

"In June," Lily replied.

"Exactly!" Harry praised her memory. "The first day of summer is the 20th of June. More than a month from today. So, it isn't quite the right time yet. But I'll bet that you feel the baby kick before the 20th, though."

"How do you know, Daddy?" Lily wanted to know.

"Because the baby clearly loves your singing, and you two sing all the time. The more you sing, the more practice the baby will get at kicking, and before you know it, you'll be able to feel it move," Harry reasoned.

"Do you really think so, Daddy?" Sophie rejoined the conversation.

"I really do." Harry gave the girls another firm nod before turning back around to face the road.

Louis reached out a hand for Harry's, squeezing tight when he got a hold. "You've gotten pretty good at the daddy thing."

Harry grinned. "Well, I had to keep up, since you're so brilliant at the papa thing."

"Do you promise I'll feel the baby before summer comes?" Louis inquired with a grin that matched his husband's.

"Only if you sing really pretty," Harry answered.

"Then we should practice," Louis decided. "What song should we sing next, girls?"

Lily and Sophie had a quick whispered conversation before chorusing their response. "'Kiss You'!"

Harry cleared his throat. "'Kiss You' it is. Ready?"

"Ready!" the girls confirmed.

Harry hummed the opening notes, then the twins took it from there. The baby kicked along happily, and all was right with the Tomlinson-Styles world.

* * *

In the first week of June, Lily and Sophie were following in their fathers' footsteps and performing in a concert on stage at their primary school.

Harry and Louis were so excited that they arrived in the school assembly hall early enough to secure front row seats. It was the first time the girls were singing in front of an audience, and they didn't want to miss a moment.

They saved seats for the twins' honorary uncles, all of whom were also pretty early. All three of them had been instrumental in helping Lily and Sophie get ready for their big day. Niall had helped them learn all their lyrics, Zayn had played fashion consultant since they were allowed to wear something other than their uniforms, while Liam had offered them all kinds of tips about being on stage. It was only fitting they were present for the big day.

"Were they nervous?" Niall asked as the five men settled into their seats.

"Yes, though Sophie more than Lily," Louis replied. "I'm sure that doesn't come as a surprise." Lily had long been their jump-right-in girl, while Sophie hung back when she wasn't sure about something.

"They're going to do such a good job," Liam predicted. "When we practiced yesterday, they did so well."

"And they're going to look fabulous," Zayn interjected. "Did they go with the last dresses they tried on?"

"Yes," Harry assured him. "And Sophie actually let Louis braid her hair." This was notable because usually Sophie had a hard time with the pulling on her scalp that braiding caused, even if Lily didn't mind it at all.

"How are you guys feeling?" Liam wondered aloud. "You nervous for them?"

Harry nodded at the same time as Louis responded, "They're going to be great."

Niall chuckled before reaching out to poke at Harry's belly, which was growing bigger by the day. "How's the tiniest one?"

Harry caressed the swell of his baby bump. "Doing great. We go next week for another ultrasound."

"And you guys still won't find out if it's a boy or a girl?" Liam confirmed.

Louis and Harry both shook their heads. "The girls are still trying to persuade us to change our minds, though," Harry reported. "They're incredibly persistent, but we still want it to be a surprise."

Liam snapped his fingers in disappointment.

The men chatted amiably until it was showtime. By the time the lights dimmed, the assembly hall was packed.

The curtain rose on a small group of Nursery students who sang first. They were very small and cute, but it was the Year One students the members of One Direction were waiting on. Fortunately, they didn't have to wait too long. After just a few songs, the Nursery students filed off stage and the Year One students filed on.

Lily and Sophie were front row centre of the Year One Chorus, and when they spotted their dads in the front row of seats, they waved, making the entire room go "aww" at the high level of adorable.

The girls and the rest of their company sang beautifully, and Harry, Louis, and all their uncles could not have been prouder. During the second song the Year One students shared, the baby--true to form--began kicking inside Harry's stomach. Just like his or her sisters, the baby very clearly loved music. It was very rare for him or her not to move when there was music in the air.

As he'd begun to do every time the baby began to kick, Harry reached for Louis' hand to place it right where the movement was. There had yet to be a kick Louis could feel, but the baby was stronger every day, so Harry was sure it wouldn't be long before Louis could feel the kicking, too.

Lily and Sophie and their classmates were in the middle of the second chorus of the song when a huge smile burst out on Louis face, and he shifted his gaze from the girls to Harry, who had been watching Louis to see if this was the day.

Harry beamed at Louis. "Can you feel it?" he whispered.

Louis beamed right back at his husband. "Yes," he answered softly. "Amazing." He placed his other hand on Harry's belly, momentarily forgetting the show up on stage.

Harry covered Louis' hands with his own, incredibly excited they could share this moment once again.

With Louis' hands still feeling for the baby, Harry returned his attention to the stage, where the twins and their classmates were hitting the bridge of their song. He could tell the exact second Lily and Sophie realised that Louis was able to feel the baby kick. They exchanged a look and abandoned their spot in the choral formation, racing for the stairs at the side of the stage, Lily grabbing Sophie's hand and dragging her along.

Harry was a little horrified as the girls' classmates faltered upon being distracted by the disappearing twins. Lily and Sophie, however, ignored their teacher calling to them from her station at the edge of the stage, and made a beeline for their fathers.

When they arrived in front of Harry, he hissed, "Lily! Sophie! What are you doing?" He was vaguely aware of the amused glances of the people around them, but most of his attention was focused on his recalcitrant children.

"We want to feel the peanut, Daddy," Lily explained, cool as a cucumber, as if she and her sister had not just abandoned their choir right in the middle of a performance. She reached out a hand to Harry's bump, none too gently pushing one of Louis' hands out of the way.

Louis just stared as Sophie pushed his other hand away so she, too, could feel the baby kicking. The music on stage petered out at the interruption the girls had caused.

The baby was definitely very awake and still kicking up a storm, and Harry could tell by the smiles that bloomed on each of the twins' faces that they could feel it. He couldn't really be mad at them for disrupting their programme when they were so clearly thrilled at their first interaction with their unborn sibling.

"Daddy, the peanut's moving!" Sophie said, awed.

Harry smiled and nodded. "It is. The baby heard you singing and started kicking right away."

"Does it hurt when the peanut kicks, Daddy?" Lily inquired, obviously a little concerned.

"Not really," he assured her.

The twins left their hands on Harry's stomach for another few moments before Louis inserted himself in the proceedings. "Girls, you need to get back on stage. Don't you have another song?"

It was at this point that Lily and Sophie peered back over their shoulders at their classmates with slightly guilty looks on their faces.

"The baby isn't going anywhere, girls," Harry promised them. "Go on back and finish."

Reluctantly, Lily and Sophie removed their hands from Harry's bump, turning to head back onto the stage.

"Don't forget to apologise," Louis told them.

More slowly than either Harry or Louis would have preferred, Lily and Sophie made their way to the stairs they'd come down. Their teacher waited at the top, and though they couldn't hear the words exchanged, Harry and Louis could tell the girls had tendered their apologies. With a rueful smile, their teacher escorted the twins back to their spots in the chorus, then offered the whole group directions.

A moment later, the music of the song Lily and Sophie had put a stop to started up again, and this time, they made it through the whole song without a hitch.

The baby kicked along the entire time.

* * *

Lily and Sophie bounced with excitement as they boarded the lift which would take them up to Dr. Cantor's office. Harry and Louis had invited them to come with them to Harry's Week Twenty-Four ultrasound. The girls had been promised they would get to see and hear their baby sibling.

The family only had to wait a short time for Dr. Cantor to appear in the examination room to which they'd been assigned.

When she walked in, her gaze immediately settled on the twins where they sat, Sophie on Louis' lap and Lily perched on the edge of the exam table secured by Harry's arm around her waist.

"Oh my goodness!" she exclaimed. "How did I get so lucky as to get the Tomlinson-Styles Twins to come in for a visit?"

They smiled up at her. "We get to see the peanut!" Lily informed her.

"Fantastic! Lily or Sophie?" she questioned.

"Lily," Lily answered primly.

"It's wonderful to meet you, Lily. And you, too, Sophie," she added, turning to Lily's sister. "The last time I saw you in person--so to speak--you were just images on that monitor." She pointed to the screen she would use to examine the baby on in just a short time. "Look how big you are!"

"We're six," Sophie told her proudly.

"That can't be true," Dr. Cantor scoffed with a wink at Louis. "You can't possibly be that old."

Lily and Sophie both nodded vigorously. "We turned six in April," Lily informed her.

"So that means you're…Year One?" the doctor queried.

"Almost Year Two," Lily replied.

"So grown up," Dr. Cantor remarked. "And about to be big sisters. Are you excited about the baby?"

The twins nodded again. "The peanut kicked us last week," Sophie offered. "It likes our singing lots."

"I'll bet," the doctor agreed with a smile. "So, are you ready to see how the baby's doing?"

"Yes!" the girls chorused.

"You need to jump down, Lil," Louis ordered, reaching out to help her off the table so Dr. Cantor could get to Harry. He balanced Lily on one knee and Sophie on the other, then scooted his seat into a spot where they'd have a really good view of the monitor.

"So, how's it going, Harry?" the doctor asked her patient.

"Good. As you heard, the baby's kicking up a storm," he responded, grinning.

"And how do you feel?"

"Not too bad," Harry said. "A little less tired than last time, I think."

"That makes sense," the doctor commented. "Last time was your first pregnancy, always tough, and you had two babies to contend with instead of just one."

Harry nodded. "I definitely feel a little less like a whale than I did last time."

"You looked like a whale, Daddy?" Lily piped up.

Before Harry could answer, Louis jumped in. "He did not. He looked amazing."

Harry sent a grateful smile in Louis' direction. "Thanks."

"So, ready to see how it's going in there?" Dr. Cantor checked.

"Totally ready." Harry slid back on the table and hiked up his shirt, exposing his bump.

The doctor squeezed the familiar gel onto Harry's stomach, then turned on her equipment before placing the wand right in the middle of the pile of gel.

As a picture began to appear on the monitor, Sophie demanded to know, "Where's the baby?"

"Give her a few seconds, Soph," Louis pleaded. He looked up at the doctor. "Sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry for. I know how excited they are to get to see the baby," Dr. Cantor stated, moving the wand around slowly to try to get the best angle. After just a few more moments, she said, "There. Look right here, girls." She pointed to the image right in the middle of the screen. "Can you see the baby's head?"

Sophie and Lily peered up at the monitor and the very clear picture of their brother or sister. "Yes!" Lily cried.

"Do you see it, Sophie?" Louis checked.

It took Sophie a second to answer, but then she beamed. "Yes. Is that its arm?" She got up to point to the body part she'd picked out.

"Good eye, Sophie," the doctor praised. "That is indeed the baby's arm. They're waving to you!"

"Hi, Peanut!" Lily called to the monitor.

The adults in the room all chuckled.

"The baby looks great," Dr. Cantor informed them. "Just the right size, and everything appears to be developing as it should."

"Excellent," Harry said, breathing a sigh of relief even though he hadn't really been worried anything was wrong.

"Would you like to hear the baby's heartbeat?" the doctor asked.

"Yes!" the twins again responded as one.

Dr. Cantor keyed in what she needed to on her computer, and it wasn't long at all before the sound of the baby's heartbeat filled the room.

Harry and Louis had gotten to hear the heartbeat on previous visits, but the girls, of course, hadn't ever gotten to. They were struck silent by the sound.

After the heartbeat had echoed through the room for a short while, Lily broke her silence to softly ask, "That's the peanut?"

The doctor nodded. "Sounds good and strong."

Dr. Cantor let the twins listen to the baby for a little bit longer before she printed some ultrasound photos for everyone, giving one to each of the girls. Both Lily and Sophie clutched their pictures like they were made from spun gold.

As Harry was cleaning off his belly with a cloth, the doctor inquired of him, "Have you thought any about your birth plan this time?"

Harry pushed himself up into a seated position before answering. "I have, actually."

Louis looked up from his own ultrasound photo to say, "You have? You didn't tell me."

"I just started reading up on it this week," Harry reassured him. "You didn't miss anything."

"So, any thoughts about how you'd like to proceed this time?" the doctor interjected.

Harry focused his attention back on her. "I was actually thinking I might like to try a water birth this time."

Dr. Cantor nodded. "Lots of people going that route."

"There was nothing wrong with the delivery of the girls," Harry noted, gazing fondly at the girls, who were busy pointing out things they noticed on the ultrasound photo to each other. "But I was thinking that a water birth might be a little more relaxing and less stress on me and on the baby."

"I can give you the names of some excellent birthing centres. They'll be happy to give you even more information than you can get online, and they can come up with the best plan for you."

"That would be fantastic," Harry said. "I just really like the idea of something a little more…zen than a hospital room."

"Understood. Even if it means I'm not the one delivering the baby." The doctor smiled. "I'll get you those names, then I think you're good to go. You can set an appointment for Week Twenty-Eight."

"Thanks."

When the doctor left the room to go collect the information she'd promised, Harry looked over at Louis. "Is that okay, Louis? A water birth?"

Louis nodded. "Sure. Like I told you last time, you're the one doing all the work. Whatever you want is good for me, too."

"I just imagined a nice, relaxing setting with candles and music, a place where the girls can come in and out, if we want them to, and if they want to. It would just be nice for it to be a little more calm and relaxed than Dubai," Harry explained further.

"We were born in Dubai," Lily piped up, clearly tuning in to the conversation.

"You were," Louis confirmed. "Our Middle East babies. You two just couldn't wait until we got back to London."

The girls loved hearing about when they were born, how a whole concert was cancelled because of them and how they'd kept their Daddy waiting for almost a whole day before they deigned to arrive. How they were Easter morning babies and how so many people they loved were there to meet them right away--their grandmothers and all their uncles.

"Where will Peanut be born?" Sophie wondered aloud.

"Right here in London," Harry told her.

"You sure you don't want to try for a baby born in a different country?" Louis teased. "Maybe we can head to Japan in October."

Harry shook his head. "No. This _will_ be a baby born in a different country. England."

"Okay," Louis agreed. "But if you change your mind…."

"I won't. Cross my heart," Harry assured him.

Dr. Cantor returned at this point. She handed a sheaf of papers over to Harry. "A list of local birthing centres and some information on water births."

"Great!" he said, already sneaking a look at some of the paperwork.

From her pocket, then, the doctor produced two red lollipops, holding one out to Lily and one to Sophie. "For two excellent big sisters."

Sophie turned to Louis, eyes wide with excitement. "Can we eat them now, Papa?"

"What do you say to Dr. Cantor first?" Louis prompted.

Sophie turned back in the doctor's direction. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Dr. Cantor returned with a smile.

"Thank you," Lily added her gratitude. "And thank you for showing us the peanut."

"It was my pleasure," the doctor told her. "It was lovely to meet you both."

The girls beamed at her graciously. "It was nice to meet you, too," Sophie added, remembering her manners, much to Louis and Harry's delight.

Louis stood up first, shifting the twins to the floor. "You can open your lollies now."

While the girls unwrapped their treats, Louis helped Harry off the exam table.

"See you in four weeks, gentlemen," Dr. Cantor said by way of farewell.

"See you then," Harry promised.

The little family worked their way back to the private lift in the back and down to the car. The girls clambered into the back, buckling in automatically, while Louis saw Harry into the passenger seat. It was not long before Louis was fitting the key into the ignition.

"New Zealand," Louis suggested as the engine came to life.

Harry looked at him quizzically for a long moment. "Are you having a stroke? Should I drive?"

"No, I'm saying maybe we want to have the baby in New Zealand. Land of the Hobbits!"

Harry rolled his eyes. "No. London."

"Sweden?"

"London."

"Brazil?"

"London."

"So…London. You're sure?"

"Just drive, Louis," Harry ordered wearily. "Just drive."

* * *

Harry woke up in the middle of the night and automatically reached a hand out for Louis. All his hand met, however, was empty mattress. Not even slightly warm empty mattress.

Slightly worried, Harry slid out of bed as smoothly as his twenty-seven week belly would allow, and pulled on the t-shirt he'd dropped onto the easy chair in the corner the night before. He then went off in search of his husband.

The first place he looked was the girls' room. When they had moved the year before into a house on the outskirts of London, the girls had lamented the loss of their bedroom with its Uncle-Zayn-drawn castle on the wall. Zayn had been more than happy to recreate the castle on the wall of their new bedroom, and that castle was always the first thing anyone saw upon entering the girls' room.

Harry smiled at the familiar painting, then checked to see if the girls were asleep. They were--Lily clutching her bedraggled stuffed teddy--Chester--and Sophie gripping the tail of her favourite stuffed blue elephant--Linus. But no Louis was to be found in the room, so Harry pulled the door shut carefully and headed downstairs.

Louis was not in the lounge watching telly--as he sometimes did if he couldn't sleep--so Harry tried the kitchen. He had much better luck there, finding Louis sitting at the kitchen table, hunched protectively over what looked very much like a Whopper from Burger King in the pale moonlight streaming in through the windows.

"Louis!" Harry scolded, flipping on the kitchen light.

Guiltily, Louis looked up at Harry. "Hi."

Harry walked over to lower himself into the chair opposite Louis'. "May I ask what's going on here?"

"Um…. I'm ingesting some much-needed protein?" Louis tried, hastily taking a bite of the burger as if Harry might throw it in the rubbish bin at any moment.

Harry sighed. "I thought we'd agree to lay off the junk food while I was pregnant."

"I know," Louis assured him. "But I couldn't help it. I was having a craving."

"A craving?" Harry repeated dubiously. "Isn't that my line?"

"I can have cravings, too!" Louis insisted, stuffing the burger into his mouth yet again. Through his bite, he said, "My body was growing tired of fruit, veg, and chicken. It needed red meat."

"So you found a twenty-four-hour Burger King?"

"I did!" He took another bite. "Turns out there's one just five miles away. Who knew?"

"Louis, the healthy food isn’t just for me and the baby, it's for all of us," Harry reminded him wearily. "I don't want the girls to get used to eating food like that all the time."

"Which is why I went in the middle of the night," Louis reasoned.

"And what if they had been the ones who had caught you?" Harry raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Then I would have made something up about how I absolutely had to have a Whopper or I would die."

Harry chuckled. "I'm sure that would have been very convincing."

Louis swallowed down the next-to-last bit of burger. "Well, as they're safely asleep upstairs, I don't have to worry about it."

Harry gave another heavy sigh and rubbed a hand against his belly. The baby had clearly heard Louis' voice and began kicking. Just like the twins had done, next to music, this baby's favourite thing was his or her papa's voice.

"Okay. I'll let it slide. Just this once," Harry allowed magnanimously.

Louis grinned, popping the last bit of sandwich into his mouth. "Thanks."

The look on Louis' face made Harry suspicious. "It isn't just this once, is it? You've done this before."

Louis shrugged and smiled. "A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do."

Harry shook his head. "Traitor."

"Sorry, babe." He took a long sip from the drink he'd purchased with his Whopper.

"Soda, too?" Harry checked.

"I needed the caffeine," Louis explained. "For the drive."

"Sure," Harry said sceptically. "The long, five-mile drive."

Louis merely shrugged again, and took another drink.

"Are there fries in the bag, too?" Harry wondered aloud, pointing to the bag sitting in front of Louis.

Louis nodded, reaching for the bag before Harry could. "Of course. No fast food meal is complete without fries."

Harry watched as Louis pulled a handful of fries from the bag to stuff them in his mouth. With yet another sigh, he posed another question. "Can I have one?"

"I don't know, Haz. I thought we'd agreed no junk food while you're pregnant," Louis teased.

"Louis, I am pregnant and hormonal. Hand over the bag," Harry ordered.

Beaming, Louis pushed the bag over to Harry. Harry wasted no time in pulling a couple fries from the bag and scarfing them down. He moaned appreciatively at the taste. "These are like little sticks of heaven."

"I know, right?"

Harry pulled a few more fries from the sack to munch on.

"So, do you forgive me?" Louis wanted to know.

"Since you provided me and the baby with this lovely guilty pleasure," he held up a fry, "I shall forgive you. Just this once."

"Just this once," Louis agreed. "Lemme have a few more fries." He reached for the bag.

Harry tugged the bag even closer to himself, shaking his head. "Absolutely not. They're mine and the baby's. Forgive me?" he asked, drawing another handful of fries out.

Louis grinned. "Just this once."

* * *

Deciding to throw caution to the wind, Harry picked a random birthing centre from the list Dr. Cantor had provided to visit first, one called Serenity Birthing Centre. They left the twins with Uncle Liam and Aunt Sophia so Louis could accompany Harry to see what the centre had to say.

The centre wasn't at all far from their house (a big selling point in its favour), and they might even have been able to walk it, but Louis insisted they drive, citing the July heat wave and the fact that Harry was very nearly twenty-eight weeks pregnant.

Harry yawned widely as Louis eased their Range Rover into the street. "Tired, Haz?"

"This one is even more of a night owl than the twins were," Harry replied. "I would be thrilled if they would figure out that nighttime is for sleeping."

"We could postpone the appointment for another day and go back home for you to rest. Liam and Sophia were going to take the girls to the Science Museum, so the house will be quiet," Louis suggested.

Harry shook his head. "I'll be fine. Thanks.

"This is still so much easier than last time," Harry went on to say. He caressed the swell of his stomach. "There's only one baby in here, there's no about-to-go-on-tour stress, I know what to expect this time. And did I mention there's no about-to-go-on-tour stress?"

Louis chuckled. "It does suck that we timed this so you're entering your third trimester in the middle of summer."

Harry sighed ruefully. "That's true. Damn you and your Christmas Eve birthday."

"Sorry. Maybe next time we can get you knocked up during the summer again."

Harry raised his eyebrows quizzically. "Next time?"

"Too soon?" Louis grinned.

"Let's get this one born, and we'll see," Harry answered, though his grin matched Louis'.

It wasn't very much later that they parked at the birthing centre, ready to see what they had on offer.

Harry immediately liked the director of the centre, a woman called Rachel Hammond. She showed them to her office to give them an overview of what Serenity was all about.

Louis and Harry took seats side by side on a comfortable sofa while the director--"Call me Rachel, please."--sat in an adjoining easy chair.

"Now, if I recall my celebrity news correctly, you two have a set of twin girls," Rachel said by way of opening.

Harry and Louis nodded. "They turned six in April," Louis added.

"And you had them naturally?" Rachel directed this question at Harry.

"At a hospital in Dubai, yes. Not exactly the original plan," he added. "They were five weeks early."

Rachel gave them a small smile of sympathy. "That must have been a little stressful."

Harry nodded and sighed at the memory. "It was, although everything turned out fine. They were healthy, and there were absolutely no complications during my delivery."

"That's great," she said. "But I'll assume that you're here because you'd like a different kind of experience this time."

"I think so," Harry responded, unconsciously placing a hand on top of his bump.

"How far along are you this time?" Rachel wondered aloud.

"Almost seven months."

"Just one this time?"

Harry nodded again. "Just one this time."

"Well, we can certainly see about giving you a different kind of birth for this little one," she told him with a smile. "Do you know if it's a boy or a girl?"

Harry and Louis both shook their heads. "We decided to keep it a surprise," Louis explained. "The twins call the baby Peanut."

Rachel laughed. "Very cute."

"They absolutely are," Harry agreed.

"So, can you tell me what you had in mind for your delivery this time?"

"I just want something that's as stress-free as possible," Harry informed her. "I think I'd like to try a water birth."

With a nod, Rachel said, "That sounds very doable. Once you're in labour, we would be able to put you up in a private room with a bed and a birthing pool. You would be free to have anyone you wanted in the room with you--"

"Even the girls?" Harry interrupted. This was a deal breaker. They hadn't yet talked with Lily and Sophie about whether or not they'd like to be present when their brother or sister was born, but they wanted it to be an option.

"Absolutely," Rachel assured them. "There's also a playroom nearby for siblings who don't want to be there for the birth. It's staffed twenty-four hours a day."

"Great," Harry said, relieved.

"We have both doctors and midwives on staff here," Rachel went on. "We can put you in the care of whoever you are most comfortable with, and they'll meet with you beforehand to go over the plan."

"That all sounds perfect," Harry told her.

"Would you like a tour?" she inquired. "I think if you see our facility, you can really get a good idea of how we operate."

"That would be great," Louis answered.

As Rachel stood, Louis did, too, offering Harry a hand in getting up. Harry's belly wasn't nearly as big at almost-seven-months as it had been last time, but he was still big enough that getting up from a soft couch wasn't easy.

Once everyone was upright, Rachel led them around the centre, showing them the different birthing rooms--including ones set up for a water birth--and the playroom for siblings she'd mentioned.

Harry asked about ambiance in the rooms. He wanted to know if it would be possible to light candles and play soft music while he was in labour. Rachel assured him that that would be no problem whatsoever--they even had iPod docks in each room. Their goal at the centre was to give every one of their clients the very best birthing experience possible.

Louis could tell that by the time they got back to Rachel's office, Harry was ready to sign on the dotted line. He, however, just wanted to run the name of the centre by his mother--just to be sure she hadn't heard anything negative about them--before they agreed to have their baby there.

Before Harry could say anything about having chosen Serenity, Louis thrust his hand out at Rachel. "Thank you so much for the tour and all the information. Harry and I have a lot to talk about, but we'll be sure to get back in touch with you soon, once we've had a chance to think things through."

Rachel smiled. "Of course."

Harry looked over at Louis quizzically, but all Louis needed to do was quirk his eyebrow for Harry to get what Louis was doing. Harry, too, then, shook Rachel's hand. "Thank you so much. Everything looks amazing."

"I will hope to hear from you soon, then," Rachel said. "And feel free to come back with the girls or any other parties you want involved to get their opinions."

"Thanks," Louis said sincerely.

Rachel walked them to the front entrance and shook their hands once again. "It was lovely to meet you both."

"You, too," Harry returned.

As they walked back to the car, Louis asked, "So, you liked it?"

Harry grinned and nodded. "I did. I think it's perfect."

"I sensed that's what you were thinking. I just want to call my mum and make sure there's no bad word of mouth on them before we commit."

Harry nodded once more. "That makes sense." The baby began kicking just then, perhaps sensing Harry's enthusiasm for the centre. Harry grabbed Louis' hand and placed it on his stomach right where their littlest one was moving. "The baby must have liked it, too."

Louis smiled. "I still think this one will be a footballer." They had tried to get the twins into football, but they had proven to be more interested in horses (Sophie) and swimming (Lily), although Harry kept reminding Louis they were still young.

"I'm so excited, Lou," Harry said as Louis unlocked the car doors and helped Harry into the passenger seat. "I think this is going to be the perfect place for our baby to be born."

"If you're happy, then I'm happy," Louis told him before shutting the door and heading over to the driver's side.

The drive home was quick and uneventful, and they walked into an empty silent house for the first time in a very long time.

Louis checked his phone as Harry slipped out of his flip flops. "Just got a text from Liam. They're in the middle of their museum tour. The girls are having a blast, he says."

"Awesome," Harry remarked. "Do you know what that means?"

"What?" Louis slipped out of his own shoes.

"It means we have the house to ourselves for a little while longer." Harry grinned lasciviously.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Louis questioned with a voice full of hope.

"If you think I'm saying that we should have sex, then yes," Harry responded bluntly.

Just like during his last pregnancy, Harry's sex drive was gone more often than not, and it had been several months since they'd slept together and done more than sleep. Therefore, Louis wasted no time in grabbing Harry's hand and pulling him through the lounge and up the stairs to their bedroom. Once there, Louis tugged off his t-shirt and unzipped his jeans while Harry did the same.

When they were standing opposite each other completely naked, Louis slowly looked Harry up and down while Harry self-consciously put one hand under his swollen belly, and the other on top. Louis smiled softly. "You're gorgeous."

Harry smiled back at him. "You're not half-bad yourself."

Louis walked over to link his hands behind Harry's neck, pulling him in for a kiss. It was a little tricky with Harry's stomach in the way, but Louis made it work.

After they'd thoroughly plundered each other's mouths, Harry took the lead, guiding them over to their bed. "We may not have long. We should get to it."

"Your wish is my command," Louis returned. "How do you want to do this?"

Harry didn't even need a moment to think. "Want to ride you."

"Hands and knees to get ready?" Louis checked, already reaching into the drawer for the tube of lubricant they kept there.

In answer, Harry crawled onto the bed, pulled a few pillows down to rest his arms on, and situated himself bottom up, presenting himself for preparation.

Louis knelt behind Harry's feet and squeezed a generous portion of lube onto his fingers. "Ready?"

"When you are."

Louis circled Harry's entrance with his index finger. Harry visibly shuddered at the touch. Thus encouraged, Louis slipped his finger inside.

Given it had been quite a while since last they'd done this, Harry was quite tight. "Relax, love," Louis urged.

Harry hauled in a deep breath and did as Louis bade. Louis was able, then, to slide his middle finger in next to his index and begin to scissor, stretching Harry out. Once Harry opened up a bit, Louis was able to find his prostate. When he brushed the spot with the tip of his middle finger, Harry writhed under him, gasping.

"Okay there, babe?"

Harry hissed. "I'm good."

Louis kept scissoring until he could slip a third finger in with ease. He stretched and stretched Harry's hole until he was more than positive that Harry was good to go. "Done," he announced to Harry. He crawled up the bed to flop down on his back right next to where Harry was slowly leaning back on his haunches.

"Need any help?" Louis offered.

Harry held out his hands for Louis to take, then used his grip on Louis to hoist one leg over Louis' middle, sitting gingerly on Louis' stomach. "Am I too heavy?"

Louis shook his head. "Not a bit. When you're ready, I'm ready."

Harry scooted backwards until he was perched on Louis' thighs, then he reached for the tube of lubricant. Louis collected it from where he'd dropped it in the centre of the bed and handed it over, and Harry squeezed some of the clear gel onto his hand. He picked up Louis' rock-hard cock from where it lay against his hip and liberally coated it with lube.

Louis sucked in a breath at Harry's touch. It had been way, way too long since they'd done this. "You better get on quick, or it's all going to be over."

With a nod, Harry scooted back up Louis' body, finding the perfect position, then he guided Louis' erection into his own opening, sitting down slowly at first, then a little faster, until he was fully seated, Louis deep within him. He gave himself a moment to adjust to the fullness, then asked Louis, "You're sure I'm not too heavy?"

"Baby, you're perfect. Absolutely beautiful." Louis reached a hand out to caress Harry's belly. "You know I missed you all swollen with babies."

Harry smiled at the compliment. "Baby," he corrected.

"Move, Harry," Louis commanded.

So move Harry did. He reached behind himself for purchase on each of Louis' thighs, then he began to ride Louis, slowly at first, then wantonly. When he switched his hands so they were around Louis' waist, he was able to hit his prostate with every thrust down.

Louis reclaimed the lube and slicked up his hand so he could pump Harry's rigid member in time with the rhythm Harry had set. It was not long before Harry screamed and came all over Louis' hand and stomach. When Harry clenched around Louis' dick in the throes of his orgasm, Louis came, too, shooting his load up into Harry until he was spent.

Harry carefully lifted himself off Louis' softening cock and collapsed onto his side next to Louis. "That was amazing, Lou. Thank you."

"It was pretty amazing, yeah? I should be the one saying thank you." Louis slithered off the bed, needing a moment to balance himself as he got to his feet. "I'll be right back."

Harry watched with tired eyes as Louis padded into the en suite and grabbed a flannel, bringing it back to the bed to clean them both. Once the flannel had been tossed aside, Louis urged Harry to turn over so he could be the little spoon to Louis' big spoon.

"How long do you suppose we have before the girls get home?" Harry wondered aloud.

"Not too long," Louis surmised. "Maybe an hour or two."

"Time enough for a nap?" Harry inquired hopefully.

"Absolutely." Louis reached down and snagged the edge of the duvet, pulling it up and over their bodies, already cooling from the sweat they'd built up minutes ago. "I'll set the alarm for thirty minutes. We should have just enough time to shower before they all get back."

Louis reached behind him to set the clock on his side of the bed for a half an hour, then regained his hold on Harry, wrapping his arms around Harry's stomach, feeling like he was cuddling both Harry and their unborn child at the same time.

"Mmmm," Harry purred happily, snuggling himself further into Louis' chest. "You do take care of me so well."

As Louis felt his husband's breaths evening out as Harry fell asleep, Louis whispered, "It's my favourite thing to do." Then he followed Harry into sleep.

* * *

When Louis entered the lounge to look for his Vans--not by the front door as they should have been--he found Harry, Sophie, and Lily all sitting on yoga mats, practicing a pose. Their feet touched bottom to bottom as their hands rested palms up on their knees. All three of them had closed their eyes, and all three of them wore a serene look on their faces. Louis couldn't help but smile at them fondly.

He cleared his throat and his family all opened their eyes and turned to look at him expectantly. It was amazing how much like Harry the girls looked with their wide green eyes, dimples, and curly brown hair. Louis could not have loved any of them more.

"Louis?" Harry interrupted his reverie.

Louis shook his head softly. "Sorry. I'm heading out for my meeting. Are you all okay here?"

Harry nodded. At thirty weeks pregnant, he was glowing. Even though it was midsummer, he was not too terribly uncomfortable. It made such a difference only having one baby inside instead of two. "We’re just doing some yoga."

"Looks relaxing," Louis commented.

Harry rubbed his belly gently. "It is. Isn't it, girls?"

Lily and Sophie nodded like bobblehead dolls.

"Fantastic!" Louis enthused. "Keep at it, then. I'll be back in a couple hours. Maybe we can go to the zoo. What do you think?"

The twins clapped their hands. "Yay!" they cheered.

"Okay, then." He found his Vans under the coffee table and slipped them on before walking over to bend down and give a kiss to each of the yoga posers. "See you guys later."

"Bye, Papa," the girls chorused.

Louis took one look back as he left the lounge, catching Harry urging the girls to relax and close their eyes once again. He smiled to himself, then headed out the door.

His meeting was right in the heart of London, at the Sony headquarters, with the board of his record label. They were choosing a new artist to add to their stable, and Louis was anxious to advocate for his choice, a young woman called Miranda West, a singer he'd discovered at a club on the outskirts of the city.

They were just beginning negotiations when his phone rang. Louis had forewarned his team that he needed to keep an eye on the phone. Now that Harry was in his third trimester, Louis was taking no risks and refused to be incommunicado.

The phone told him it was Harry calling. Louis excused himself, then accepted the call. "Haz? What's up?"

"Papa? Papa?" came a teary voice that was decidedly not Harry's.

Louis' insides twisted instantly. "Sophie? What's wrong?"

"Daddy won't wake up," she answered, clearly crying and clearly terrified. Louis could hear Lily sobbing in the background, too.

Louis forced himself to remain calm, though all that was going through his mind was, _Harry's dead? Harry's dead?_ "What do you mean, baby? Is he asleep?"

"We was doing yoga, and he fell over, and now he won't wake up," Sophie explained in between sobs. "Lily and me both tried to shake him, but he's still sleeping."

"Sophie, listen to me," Louis told her in the firmest voice he could muster. "I'm going to ring 9-9-9, then I'm going to ring Mrs. Schreiber to come stay with you until I can get there. You and Lily stay right where you are."

"Okay, Papa," Sophie agreed.

Louis ended the call and didn't even bother to explain things to the worried faces around the meeting table before he rang 9-9-9 and requested an ambulance be sent immediately to his house, giving them all the information Sophie had offered and making sure to mention that his husband was seven months pregnant. Once they had assured him an ambulance was on the way, he called their neighbour, Mrs. Schreiber, and asked if she would go over and stay with the twins, explaining briefly the little he knew about what was going on. As she agreed, Louis was already rising from the table.

"Sorry--" Louis began to apologise for just getting up and leaving when their meeting had barely gotten underway.

One of the very first board members of his label, Charlie Davenport, interrupted him. "Go, Louis."

Louis did not need to be told twice. He raced from the room, took the stairs down to the parking level--not wanting to wait for the lift--and drove his car toward home like he was in a car chase scene from _The Fast and the Furious_. God only knew how many traffic laws he broke.

The ambulance he'd summoned was pulling out of the drive as he pulled in. Mrs. Schreiber had the girls corralled by the front door, but the minute Louis stepped out of the car, she let them go, and they ran to Louis' side. He squatted down to take one weeping twin in each arm.

Holding them close, he kissed both of their heads. "I'm here, girls. Papa's here."

Mrs. Schreiber walked up to the trio. "Mr. Tomlinson, your husband is unconscious, but alive," she began, erasing Louis' deepest concern. He heaved a sigh of great relief as she went on, "They've taken him to St. Luke's. Do you want me to watch the twins while you go?"

Louis stood up to take her up on her offer when Lily clung to his leg and piped up in a screechy little voice, "No, Papa, no. We want to be with you."

He looked down and met his neighbour's eyes. "Thanks so much, but I'll take them with me."

She smiled sadly and nodded. "Of course. Please don't hesitate to call if there's anything at all I can do."

"I will," Louis promised. Without any further ado, he told the girls to wait right where they were while he got the keys to the Range Rover.

Less than five minutes later, Lily and Sophie were safely belted into the back seat of the SUV, and the three of them were on their way to the hospital to find out what was going on with Harry.

Now that he had the girls in the car with him, Louis drove a little more sedately, though he still ran every yellow light. St. Luke's wasn't far, and it wasn't long before he parked the SUV in the first free space near the A&E. From there, he speed walked into the A&E, one twin's hand in each of his.

He asked the first nurse they encountered if she knew where Harry was. She directed him to the reception desk, where he asked after Harry again. The nurse there directed them to the corner section of the A&E ward. Louis' only other question was if it was okay for the girls to go with him. At this point, he was pretty sure the nurse recognised him--and Lily and Sophie--and she nodded.

When Louis pushed back the curtain blocking a public view of the corner treatment area, he heaved a sigh of deep relief. Harry was propped semi-upright on the bed, and he was awake. He smiled weakly as his gaze met Louis'. "Hi," he rasped weakly.

"Hi," Louis replied with a warm smile.

"Daddy!" Sophie cried, dropping Louis' hand and grabbing Lily's, pulling her to Harry's bedside ahead of Louis.

"Hi, girls," Harry whispered.

Louis came up behind the girls and put one of his hands on Lily's shoulder and one on Sophie's.

"You scared us, Daddy," Lily said accusingly.

"I'm so sorry, baby," Harry apologised in a whisper. "I didn't mean to."

It was at this point that Louis noticed the other person in the room, a young woman who Louis assumed was a doctor. He offered her a smile. "Hi. I'm Louis, Harry's husband."

She smiled back. "I figured. I'm Dr. Hollister."

"These two rascals are Lily and Sophie," he introduced, pointing to each girl for good measure.

"The famous Tomlinson-Styles Twins," she commented. "It's a pleasure to meet you both."

The girls gave her quick smiles before returning their attention to Harry.

"How is he?" Louis asked the doctor. Without giving her a chance to answer, he added, "Is the baby okay?"

"Both Harry and the baby are fine," Dr. Hollister assured him. "Harry just collapsed from dehydration."

Louis frowned. "I don't understand. He drinks water constantly."

"Being pregnant uses up a lot of energy, so sometimes, even when one is doing everything they're supposed to, things like this can happen," she explained.

Louis looked down at Harry and took note of the tube going into his left forearm, right under his elbow. The doctor tracked his gaze and told him, "We're giving him fluids to combat the dehydration. He's recovering nicely, and the baby isn't in any distress, but I'd like to keep him here until tomorrow just to be sure."

"Do I really have to?" Harry protested, though the fact that he could barely raise his voice to a normal volume served as a sign that the doctor was making a good decision.

The doctor nodded firmly. "It's for the good of both you and your baby."

Harry sighed, resigned. He turned to look back at the twins. "Girls, I'm so sorry about the zoo."

"It's okay, Daddy," Lily said easily.

"We can go another time," Sophie added. "When you and the peanut are better."

Harry smiled fondly at his daughters. "Thank you for understanding. You're the best girls your papa and I could have asked for."

"If you three want to go find, maybe, a snack or something, we need to move Harry up to a room for the rest of his stay," Dr. Hollister stated, looking Louis in the eye. "I'll send a nurse down to find you in the café when he's all settled."

"Sounds like a plan," Louis agreed. "Lily, Sophie, let's go find something to eat, then we'll see Daddy again when he's upstairs in his own room."

"Okay, Papa," Sophie said. She tried to get up on tippy toes to kiss Harry's cheek, but she couldn't quite make it, so Louis lifted her the extra little bit so she could give Harry his kiss. "Bye, Daddy."

"Bye, Soph," Harry whispered.

Lily elbowed Sophie out of the way so she could give Harry a kiss, too. Louis lifted her, too, and Lily kissed Harry and said, "We'll see you soon."

"I love you guys." Though spoken softly, his words were no less meaningful.

Louis pressed his own kiss to Harry's face--though to his temple, not his cheek. "You scared me, too," he whispered in Harry's ear before he straightened. "Don't ever do that again."

"I'll try not to."

"Love you," Louis said as he returned to an upright position.

"Love you, too."

* * *

When Harry entered his thirty-third week, he and Louis decided that they should take the twins to visit the birthing centre where their baby brother or sister would be born. They didn't want the first time the girls saw the centre to be when Harry went into labour. They wanted to be able to answer every single question they could think to ask without the stress of knowing the baby was on the way.

They called Rachel Hammond at Serenity and asked her for an appointment to bring Lily and Sophie by. They got an appointment first thing the very next day, and they promised the girls their postponed trip to the zoo afterwards. They were even meeting up with Liam, Sophia, and the twins' "cousin," the Paynes' now-three-year-old, Lucas, and Zayn and Perrie with the twins' other "cousin," ten-month-old Patricia (more commonly known as Tricia).

The twins were so excited about their day that they stared Louis and Harry awake at six-thirty in the morning.

Louis was first to awaken to a pair of green eyes boring into his face. He groaned and gazed up to the clock on his nightstand. "Lily, it's six-thirty-two. What are you doing up?"

"It's Baby Centre and Zoo Day, Papa!" she informed him--loudly.

The shout awoke Harry, who opened his eyes and shrank back from the pair of green eyes just inches from his face. "Sophie!"

"You and Peanut need to wake up, Daddy," Sophie insisted. "We need to get ready to go."

"Our appointment isn't until nine, girls," Louis reminded them. "Can we maybe get a little more sleep?"

Lily and Sophie sighed simultaneously.

Harry tried a different tactic. "The peanut needs a little more rest before we have such a big day."

Sophie gave an even bigger, more dramatic sigh. "Okay," she agreed, though it was with obvious reluctance.

"Lil?" Louis checked with Sophie's sister.

"Fine," she allowed. "Can we sleep with you?"

"Absolutely," Louis answered, pleased that they hadn't put up too much of a fight against a little more sleep.

Lily clambered over Louis while Sophie gingerly climbed over Harry. Though Harry didn't change position owing to the impediment of his large stomach--getting comfortable to begin with was a task--Louis did, pulling the duvet up and over the girls.

"Just an hour more sleep, then we can get up and get ready," Louis told them.

"Okay, Papa," the twins chorused. They were all four of them asleep again less than five minutes later.

When Louis awoke again an hour after that--this time to the soft musical alarm he'd set the night before--the sun was pouring through Harry and Louis' bedroom window. As Louis stretched to mute the alarm and wake himself up, he hoped the sun was a sign that it would be a beautiful day to be out and about in London.

When he had blinked enough in the sunlight to see properly, Louis reached over and gently rubbed Harry's shoulder. "Haz…," he stage whispered. "Haz!"

Harry woke with a deep, shuddering breath. His hands went immediately to his stomach--as if to check on the little one inside--then he twisted his head to gaze up at Louis. He smiled. "Hi."

Louis smiled back. "Hi. It's seven-thirty."

Harry groaned and struggled up into a seated position while trying not to wake either of the sleeping children between them.

"I thought you would prefer making breakfast to getting the girls ready," Louis said.

Harry nodded. "I'll make pancakes after I shower."

"Sounds great."

Harry took another moment, closing his eyes and pulling in another deep breath, before he got up and headed into the en suite for a shower.

While Harry showered and dressed, Louis checked his mobile for e-mail and messages. There was still plenty of One Direction business to keep track of, even if they didn't have the mad schedule they'd had in their first five years. He was done checking everything by the time Harry emerged from the steamy washroom.

After Harry had dressed and headed down to the kitchen, Louis took his own shower and dressed, then woke the twins up and urged them back to their bedroom to pick out clothes to wear.

As usual, Sophie wanted to wear a sundress--she chose a bright yellow one--and Lily chose shorts and a t-shirt--cut-off jean shorts and a purple shirt with butterflies on it, to be exact. After they finished dressing, Louis brushed and did their hair--a French braid for Lily and a ponytail for Sophie. Once they were ready for their public, they all headed down to the kitchen where Harry was busy plating pancakes.

They all ate quickly to ensure they were not late for their appointment at the birthing centre. Even though the girls were raring to go, Harry and Louis made them help clean up the kitchen before letting them run for the car.

The Tomlinson-Styles family arrived right on time for their appointment. Rachel met them at the front desk.

"Mr. Tomlinson, Mr. Styles," she greeted them warmly, reaching out to shake each of their hands.

"Harry and Louis," they corrected her, all smiles.

"Harry and Louis," she repeated dutifully. She looked down at the twins. "And who are these gorgeous creatures?"

"Lily and Sophie," Louis introduced, pointing to each girl in turn. "Girls, this is Ms. Hammond. She runs the centre."

Lily and Sophie politely shook Rachel's hand.

Rachel grinned down at them. "It's such a pleasure to meet both of you."

"Daddy's having our baby here," Lily informed her smartly.

"Yes, I know," Rachel returned. "Do you girls want to look around so you'll know where everything is when it's time for you to meet your brother or sister?"

Lily and Sophie nodded enthusiastically.

"Well, let's go, then."

Rachel led the family down the hall and around a corner and opened a door into a sizeable room. She ushered them inside to look around.

The room had an adjustable bed, several comfortable-looking chairs, and a large tub in it. It was coloured a soothing pale yellow, and the wood floors were decorated with small throw rugs. It was a warm room, perfect for welcoming a new little one into the world.

"As you'll recall, we've tried to create a calming environment here," Rachel said to Louis and Harry. "I hope I told you that you can have as many--or as few--people here in the room with you when you're in labour."

Harry assured her, "You did. This is a beautiful room."

"Why is there a tiny pool in here?" Sophie asked.

"Well, Sophie," Rachel began, making eye contact with Harry to make sure she'd matched the right name to the right twin. When Harry nodded almost imperceptibly, she went on, "sometimes mummies and daddies like to have their babies in the water, so we have the pool in here, just in case."

"Is that what you're doing, Daddy?" Lily inquired.

Harry nodded. "I think so."

Lily wrinkled her nose. "That's weird."

Reaching down to tweak her nose, Harry agreed, "It does sound a little weird, right? But I think it will be a peaceful way for the baby to come into the world."

"If you say so," Lily tossed back. It was possible they left the twins with Niall a little too much. That was one of his favourite lines.

"Would you like to see the kids' waiting room?" Rachel questioned the girls.

Lily and Sophie both nodded.

Just down the hall from the birthing room was a large room decked out with toys, a television, and a huge bookshelf weighed down with all sorts of reading material.

"Kids whose mums or dads are having babies can come in here to play," Rachel told the twins.

"Can we play now, Papa?" Sophie asked in a voice filled with hope.

Louis shook his head. "Not now, Soph. We don't have time today, but when Daddy is getting ready to have the baby, you can come in here to explore. Okay?"

Reluctantly, Sophie nodded. "Okay."

"Do you two have any other questions?" Harry inquired.

"Do we get to see the baby being born?" Lily wondered aloud.

Harry shared a look with Louis, and Louis shrugged that it didn't matter to him, so Harry nodded. "If you want to. We can talk more about it at home, and you can decide."

"Is it scary?" Sophie wanted to know.

Harry thought about that one for a moment. "Not really. It hurts, so you might be worried about me the way I am when one of you gets hurt, but it's normal for it to hurt, and once the baby's here, the pain goes away."

"Did it hurt when we were born?" Lily checked.

"Twice," Harry answered ruefully. "But it was all worth it because we got the two of you."

"Any other questions?" Louis rested one hand on each of the girls' shoulders.

Lily and Sophie paused to think, then they both shook their heads.

"Thanks so much for letting us look around, Rachel," Louis said.

"My pleasure," Rachel assured them. "The baby's due in October, correct?"

"That's the plan," Harry replied, rubbing his belly. "My due date is the 15th of October."

She smiled. "Great. Then we'll see you in the fall."

"Absolutely." Harry reached out a hand to shake hers.

Louis, Sophie, and Lily also shook Rachel's hand, then they followed her out of the kids' waiting room and back to the front of the building. The second they bid Rachel goodbye and stepped outside into the warm mid-morning air, Lily and Sophie shouted, "The zoo! The zoo!"

Harry and Louis laughed just long enough that the girls began to get offended, but then Louis said, "Well, let's get going, then. Haz, you want to text Zayn and Liam to let them know we're on the way?"

By the time they found a car park and walked around to the entrance, Zayn, Perrie, and Tricia and Liam, Sophia, and Lucas were all waiting, their chatter coming to a halt when the twins ran to attack their aunts, uncles, and cousins with hugs and kisses.

Louis took that moment to appraise Harry. "You okay, love? You look tired."

Harry chuckled darkly. "It's a day ending in 'y,' Lou. I am always tired." He placed a hand at the bottom of the swell of his belly. "This little one is still quite the night owl."

"You sure you can handle the zoo?" Louis checked, brow furrowing in concern.

Harry nodded. "I'll be fine. The girls would stop speaking to us if we cancelled the zoo again."

"Okay, then."

After Harry and Louis finally got their turn to greet their bandmates and their families, Louis clapped his hands, gaining the attention of Lily, Sophie, and Lucas. "Who's ready to see some animals?"

"Aminals!" Lucas cheered.

"I want to see the snakes first!" Lily cried.

"I want to see the fishes first!" Sophie countered.

"Why don't we get inside first?" Louis suggested. "Then we can check out a map and make a plan."

"I've got the tickets," Liam announced, passing out one to everyone.

Once they had their tickets, Lily and Sophie grabbed Lucas' hands, and the three excited children made a run for the entrance.

Liam and Sophia raced after them, with Zayn--toting Tricia--and Perrie close behind. Harry moved slowly, but surely, to follow the pack, Louis right next to him to help if needed.

They had not gotten very far at all inside the park before Harry put a hand out to touch Louis' forearm to get his attention. "I need to sit for just a minute."

"I thought you were okay," Louis said worriedly.

"I'm fine," Harry assured him. "I just need to sit for a minute." He headed for a nearby bench and sat.

Louis sat down right next to him.

"The girls, Louis," Harry pointed in the direction of where Lily and Sophie stood in the middle of the path poring over the map Zayn had gotten them.

"The girls are fine," Louis remarked. "I'm concerned about you."

"Nothing's wrong, Lou. I'm almost thirty-four weeks pregnant is all."

"You were less pregnant than this when you overdid our first show on the tour," Louis reminded him; the memory was still pretty vivid in Louis' head. "I don't want that to happen again."

"I won't overdo it," Harry vowed. "This is why I'm resting."

Harry watched as Liam mediated an argument between Lily and Sophie about where to go first. Louis kept his eyes on Harry.

"Can I get you anything?" Louis inquired.

"I'm f--," Harry started to repeat, then he looked into Louis' eyes and knew he only wanted to help. "How about some water?"

Louis beamed. "I'll be right back."

Harry watched as Louis ran to a nearby kiosk to purchase two bottles of water. When he came back and handed one to Harry, Harry twisted the cap off and took a healthy swig. Louis sat down next to him again and likewise took a sip of water.

After he'd consumed half of the bottle, Harry smiled over at Louis. "I'm all set."

"You sure?"

Harry nodded. "I'm sure. Let's go."

Louis stood first, then offered his hand to Harry to help him up.

They rejoined their party just as it seemed Liam had negotiated a truce--and a decision. "So, first the aquarium, then the reptiles. Is it a deal, girls?"

Lily and Sophie both nodded.

"Thanks, Li," Louis said as he and Harry walked up to them.

Liam grinned. "No problem. You okay, Haz?"

"I'm fine. Let's go."

The three older kids loved looking at all the fish in the aquarium. Lily and Sophie practiced their big sister skills on Lucas, naming the fish they knew and sounding out the words on the signs for the fish they didn't, getting the occasional assist from one of the adults.

When they were done walking through the aquarium, they went to check out the reptiles. Lily, in particular, loved this exhibit. She loved looking at all the varieties of snakes, lizards, and frogs the reptile house had on display. Sophie was a little more wary of the creepy, crawly, slithery things and clung to Louis a little, but she bravely made it all the way through the house without begging to leave. Lucas busied himself getting Liam and Sophia to name each and every reptile they encountered.

While Liam helped the kids decide where to go next--once more consulting the map--Harry declared that he needed to take another rest. Louis followed him to an empty table at a nearby café.

"Harry, are you sure you're okay with being here?" Louis questioned as they each took a seat.

Harry sighed, clearly frustrated. "Louis, I'm fine. Stop hovering."

"Well, excuse me," Louis snapped. "Was that not you in hospital three weeks ago?"

Harry sighed again, this time with understanding. "I'm fine, Louis. The baby's fine. The doctors wouldn't have released me if something was wrong."

It was Louis' turn to sigh. "I know. It was just…really scary."

"I know." Harry reached out for Louis' hand. "But everything's okay now. You need to relax."

Louis nodded his understanding. "I'll try."

And try he did. After they visited the tigers, the monkeys, and the birds, Harry needed another break. That time, instead of fretting and hovering over Harry, Louis decided that it was just about time for lunch, and they all took a break.

All three of the older kids ate chicken nuggets, while Perrie produced a bottle for Tricia. Lily, Sophie, and Lucas plotted what they wanted to see next, giving the adults a chance to catch up.

"So, how's the pregnancy going this time, Haz?" Liam asked before taking a giant bite of his cheeseburger.

"Good," Harry replied with a smile. "The hospital visit excepted, of course."

"I had problems with dehydration when I was preggers with Tricia," Perrie sympathised. "Not bad enough to put me in hospital, but enough to knock me for a loop a couple times."

"See, Louis, and Tricia was born perfectly fine," Harry stated pointedly.

"I see, I see," Louis said, resigned. "I've backed off."

Softly, Harry admitted, "I know. I noticed."

"So," Sophia interjected. "Do you guys think it's a boy or a girl?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know. I'm kinda thinking it might be a boy this time."

"I think it's another girl," Louis countered.

"What makes you think so?" Liam asked.

Louis copied Harry's shrug. "I dunno. Intuition."

"Whichever it is, I'm positive we’re getting a footie player this time," Harry remarked. "The twins kicked a lot, but late in the pregnancy it wasn't so bad because they didn't have a lot of room. This one has plenty." He chuckled as he sipped at his new bottle of water.

Perrie reached down to rub a gentle index finger down a sleeping Tricia's face. "This one was a solid kicker, too. Kept me up all night."

"Well, then she and ours can be night owls together," Harry commented ruefully, caressing his belly.

"Is Lucas starting at nursery school this year?" Louis asked Liam.

"He is. He's pretty excited," Liam reported. "Sophia will need to be the one to take him. I'm not sure I'm quite ready to let him go."

"The separation anxiety will all be on Liam's side," Sophia teased.

Liam tilted his head, shrugged, and smiled. "Can't help it."

"Look at us, all loved up and parental," Zayn proclaimed, beaming widely.

"And now Niall has Fiona," Sophia said. "If it's as serious as I think it is, it won't be long until they're loved up and parental, too."

When they were done eating, they headed to the penguins and the rainforest area. Harry took little breaks as they went, but Louis was careful to just let him be and concentrated instead on the girls and their wonder with everything they saw. By the middle of the afternoon, Lucas would rest with Harry, having skipped his nap and worn out by all the walking, so Harry always had company.

They finished up the day by visiting the butterflies, the African animals, and the petting zoo (where Sophie and Lily decided they wanted to bring a baby lamb home, and Lucas cried at having to leave the baby goats behind). It was three very exhausted children--and one sleeping baby--who were packed into SUVs just before tea time.

The adults all hugged goodbye and made a plan to try to get together at least one more time before Harry and Louis' new little one arrived.

As Louis pulled the car out of the car park and into the late-day London traffic, Harry reached for his hand. "Good day, yeah?" he said happily.

"Good day," Louis concurred.

Harry looked over his shoulder where the girls were strapped in. They were awake, but clearly very tired. "I don't think we'll have any problems at bedtime tonight."

Louis chuckled. "That'll be refreshing."

Harry squeezed Louis' hand gently. "Thanks, Lou."

"For what?"

"For trusting me to know how to take care of me and our baby."

"I trust you one hundred percent," Louis stated firmly. "I know you're doing everything you can to make sure the peanut is born healthy."

"Thanks," Harry repeated.

"You know," Louis began, "we are eventually going to have to settle on a name to call the baby other than Peanut."

Harry laughed. "You're right."

They'd discussed names here and there, and the girls had lots of suggestions (some viable, some not so viable--Lily was still rooting for "Batman" if it was a boy), but they hadn't made any decisions. It was tricky to pick when they had names to consider for both a boy and a girl.

"You want to do what we did last time and make lists? We can have a girl column and a boy column. We can choose a first name from your list and a middle name from mine," Louis suggested.

With a fond smile, Harry inquired, "Why the first name from my list? We did that last time."

"You're the one doing all the work again," Louis answered. "Seems only fair."

"It's a plan, then." He looked back at the twins again. They were both just looking passively out the window, drained from their long day. "Looks like we can use the extra time from not arguing about bedtime tonight to start those lists."

Louis used the rear view mirror to take a quick glance at the almost-sleeping twins and smiled. "It's a plan."

* * * 

Lily and Sophie--now proud Year Two students--were just getting back into the swing of school when Harry hit the same stage in his pregnancy he'd been in when he'd gone into labour with them.

From the moment he woke up that Wednesday morning, he couldn't help feeling nervous. Louis had already gotten up, and Harry could hear the voices from down the hall that told him his husband was getting the girls up and into their uniforms for school.

After pulling himself up into a seated position, Harry used this moment he had alone to speak to the little one still growing inside him. Putting a hand on either side of his large bump, he whispered, "Hi there, Peanut. I hope you know how much your Papa and I are looking forward to meeting you. Your sisters are also quite anxious to meet you. But you can't come yet. I know your sisters came early, but you can hang out in there as long as you need to. Take your time. We can wait another month. I promise. You just concentrate on getting big and strong. I love you already, baby." He brought a hand up to his mouth to kiss his fingertips, pressing them right to the centre of his belly.

He took another moment to convince himself he wasn't going to go into labour then and there, just as he had six years ago, then he hauled himself out of bed. After a quick trip to the loo, he headed downstairs to get breakfast ready.

He'd plated fried eggs, sausage, and toast and was just placing them in front of the stools at the kitchen island when Lily and Sophie ran into the room, Louis moving at a more leisurely pace behind them.

"Good morning, girls," Harry greeted them warmly. It had been over a year, but he still couldn't get over how cute the girls were in their uniform of purple skirt, white shirt, and purple blazer. As was often the way of things, Lily's hair was up in a braid and Sophie's was down, just as curly as his own as it fell past her shoulders.

The twins ran to give Harry hugs. He lifted the plates he was holding high as they loved on him.

"Good morning, Daddy," the girls returned, their words tripping over each other.

"Sit down now," Harry prompted. "Breakfast is ready."

Once the girls were eating, Louis came up behind Harry and wrapped his arms around his baby bump, lacing his fingers over the middle, just underneath the distended butterfly tattoo. He pressed a kiss to Harry's shoulder. "Good morning, Haz."

Harry placed his hands over Louis'. "Good morning."

"What's wrong?"

Harry attempted to twist his head to look at Louis. "What? Nothing."

"Liar," Louis whispered into Harry's ear before he let him go so they could face each other. "I can see the worry lines right here." He traced Harry's brow with his fingertip.

Harry sighed. "You know me too well."

"After eleven years, I should hope so," Louis remarked with a soft smile. "Now stop stalling. What's wrong?"

"I'm two days away from thirty-seven weeks," Harry explained.

It took Louis a few seconds to get it. He placed his hands on Harry's belly, cradling it. "That's not going to happen this time. This one's not going to be too early."

"How can you possibly know that?"

"The girls were early because there were two of them, and no matter how hard you tried to take it easy, you were still under all that tour stress last time," Louis stated logically. "Neither of those things is the case this time."

Harry smiled. "True," he admitted.

"Full term this time," Louis insisted. He addressed the baby in Harry's stomach. "Right, Peanut?"

Harry leaned down to kiss Louis.

"Ew!" chorused the twins from their perches on the stools.

"Oi! If you're not quick about getting your breakfast eaten, we'll kiss you, too," Louis threatened, grinning all the while.

Harry slunk around the island until he was standing right behind the girls. "I think we should kiss them either way," he declared. He gave Lily and Sophie no more warning before grabbing each of them by the shoulder and bending down to kiss their heads.

"Daddy!" they squealed, though it was clearly with joy rather than annoyance.

"Finish your food," Louis told them. "It's time to get to school."

The twins scarfed down the rest of their eggs and sausages, then ran for the door to put on their shoes.

Louis came back around the island. "I'll drop them at school, then come right back. Think of something we could do to keep your mind off what today is."

Harry nodded. "Okay."

Louis kissed Harry again, this time without the disdain of their daughters. "See you soon."

"Yeah." Harry walked toward where the girls were picking up their satchels. "Bye, girls. Have a good day at school."

"Bye, Daddy," Lily said.

"Let's go, Papa," Sophie added.

Once his family had departed, Harry cleared the girls' plates and got out what he would need to make breakfast for Louis and himself as soon as Louis returned.

Since the girls' school was not that far away, it would not be long before Louis came home. Harry used the time to prepare himself a cup of herbal tea and was sat at the kitchen table sipping it when Louis re-entered the room.

"They're all set for the day?" Harry checked as Louis bent over to kiss the top of his head.

"Yep."

"You ready for some breakfast?"

"At some point," Louis replied. "Doesn't have to be right this second."

Harry took one more sip of his tea, then levered himself out of his chair. "I've got everything ready. Won't take long."

Louis sat himself on the kitchen island to watch as Harry fried up eggs, sausages, and tomatoes (which the twins hated, but Louis loved) and toasted a couple slices of bread.

"So, how're you feeling, babe?" Louis asked as Harry turned the sausages.

"Like I'm nine months pregnant," Harry answered drily.

Louis chuckled. "Well, you look amazing."

Harry turned to face him, eyebrows raised. "I'm a whale. Just like last time."

Louis shook his head and repeated, "You look amazing. Just like last time."

Harry sighed fondly, then returned his attention to their breakfast, plating everything, then handing Louis his plate.

Getting up on one of the island stools would have been tricky for Harry, so they sat at the kitchen table to eat.

"So," Louis inquired through a mouthful of egg, "have you thought about how you'd like me to help you keep your mind off today's anniversary?"

"I have," Harry told him. "I was thinking that since it's such a pretty day, we could go out for a walk, maybe shop a little, then have lunch out."

Louis nodded. "Sounds good. And this afternoon?"

Harry shrugged. "Maybe just a movie on the couch until it's time to go get the girls from school."

"Perfect."

They finished their meal slowly, just enjoying the quiet of the house, both knowing that pretty soon they would have another baby in the house, and it wouldn't be quite so quiet anymore.

Louis insisted on doing the cleaning up, and when that was done, they headed out for a bit of walking and shopping.

The area of London in which they lived was not at all in the thick of things, but there was still a lovely park not far away (which contained a playground the twins loved to frequent) and several streets full of shopping. Hand in hand, they walked through the park at a leisurely pace. They had made it to the small pond in the centre of the park when Harry stopped and grimaced.

"What is it?" Louis immediately questioned.

"Contraction," Harry informed him, tears already forming in his eyes. "Not again. It's too early, Louis."

Louis guided Harry to a bench and urged him to sit. "Maybe it's Braxton Hicks again. Just like in Hong Kong."

Harry sighed and visibly worked to calm himself.

Louis sat down next to Harry and took his hand, rubbing his thumb soothingly over Harry's palm. "It's going to be fine, Haz. Just breathe."

Harry did as Louis bade and pulled in deep breaths, releasing them slowly. They sat and chatted quietly while Harry calmed down. Another contraction came just about twenty minutes later, and Harry scrunched up his face and powered through it.

When another twenty minutes came and the contraction Harry felt this time was no stronger than the first, he let go of Louis' hand so Louis could look up Braxton Hicks on his phone. Harry had already decided that these contractions felt very similar to the false labour he'd had in Hong Kong and not very similar to the contractions he'd felt when he'd gone into actual labour. Louis' quick research on his mobile proved Harry's instincts were more than likely correct, and these contractions should disappear given a little time.

Sure enough, they decided to continue walking toward the nearest shopping area, and a half-hour passed with no more contractions.

"That scared the shit out of me," Harry confessed as they walked past the local hardware store.

Louis reached over and rubbed his husband's belly. "I know. The peanut just wanted to remind you they're there."

Harry chuckled. "Like I could forget with this huge bump."

"I told you, it's all going to be fine. No early babies this time," Louis predicted.

With a frown Harry said, "I hope you're not jinxing it by continuing to insist they won't be early."

"I'm not jinxing it!" Louis declared. "I'm manifesting it as truth by saying it over and over."

"Oh." Harry grinned. "Is that what you're doing?"

Louis nodded forcefully. "It is."

"Well, then, the peanut has no choice but to stay put," Harry concluded.

"Look, here's the toy shop," Louis pointed out. "Shall we go in and see if we can find something fun to give to the girls once the baby's here? So they don't feel neglected?"

"I think that's a fine idea. Something we can give them in five weeks," Harry stated, his tone decisive.

"That's the spirit," Louis enthused, opening the shop door for Harry. "Five weeks. No more. No less."

* * *

The baby stayed exactly where it was supposed to as Harry entered his thirty-seventh, then thirty-eighth week of his pregnancy. He went for an appointment with Dr. Cantor, and she assured them that everything looked fantastic. The baby hadn't dropped yet, and everything seemed right on target for Harry to deliver in another month.

Harry was a whole lot calmer about everything, having passed the point when he delivered last time. Louis was pretty calm, too, taking Dr. Cantor at her word and feeding off of Harry's serenity.

It was just as well they were both calm, since the girls grew more excited by the day. Louis had given them a calendar to check off days until the baby's due date--the 15th of October. They took turns crossing out the days, and they knew just how relatively short a time it was until their brother or sister arrived.

From the moment they woke up each morning, Lily and Sophie talked about everything they were going to do with the baby once it was born. Harry and Louis needed to frequently remind them that the baby was going to be tiny at first--just like Tricia--and it would be a while before they could truly play with him or her. The girls could not have cared less--they were still excited at the prospect of holding the baby, kissing the baby, feeding the baby, even helping to change the baby's diapers. (This last was a desire Harry and Louis were positive would disappear the first time the baby pooped. There was nothing exciting about changing a poopy nappy.)

When Louis was called in for what could turn into an all-day meeting at his label in the middle of Harry's thirty-eighth week, Harry encouraged him to go without worrying; the baby wasn't due for a few more weeks. The girls were home because it was a professional day for their teachers, but Harry was sure he could keep Lily and Sophie entertained well enough with Disney movies and the toys they had amassed through six and a half years of being spoiled by everyone who loved them.

Louis consented to go, but only on the condition that he called Niall to come be with Harry and the kids just in case. Harry agreed easily. He hadn't seen Niall in a few weeks, and Lily and Sophie, of course, adored him beyond measure. Besides, he felt big and slow enough at this point that an extra pair of hands couldn't hurt.

Niall happily agreed to come and hang out with Harry and the twins, and drove over half an hour before Louis' meeting.

Louis made Harry and Niall promise to call him immediately if something seemed amiss--he wouldn't turn down his phone--and when they both swore they would, he left for his meeting feeling more or less confident that all was well.

Since Niall was over to help, Harry figured it was safe enough to take the girls out for a little while. They all walked over to the nearby park, heading right to the playground Lily and Sophie loved. Harry and Niall took a seat on a bench nearby, keeping an eye on the girls as they played.

The twins were having a swing-off to determine who could swing the highest as Niall inquired, "So, how's it going? Not too long now before the baby's here."

As he did often, Harry caressed his belly tenderly. "Less than four weeks."

"The girls seem excited," Niall observed.

Harry laughed. "The girls are beyond excited. I keep trying to remind them how tiny the baby will be at first. He or she won't be up for a tea party or a game of tag right away."

"Have you guys picked a name yet?" Niall wondered aloud.

"We're doing the list thing again," Harry told him. "I made a list of both girl and boy names and Louis made a list, too. Louis will choose a first name from my list and I'll choose a middle name from his."

"Cool. I'll assume Niall and James are in the running if it's a boy." Niall quirked a smile at Harry.

Harry smiled back at his friend and bandmate. "Of course."

"And, you know, Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively named their daughter James, so that can really go on both lists," Niall pointed out.

"I'll keep that in mind," Harry assured him.

In companionable silence they watched the girls switch from the swings to the slide and then to the roundabout. When they moved to the seesaw, Niall spoke up again. "Louis said something about how you weren't going to have the baby in hospital this time?"

Harry shook his head. "No, not this time. We chose a birthing centre instead. The hospital was fine when I had the twins, but I thought a birthing centre would be a little more relaxed. I can play music and light candles, really make it nice and serene. I'd really like to try a water birth with this one. It's supposed to be very calming for both the parent delivering and the baby."

"Sounds great," Niall remarked.

"We can also have anybody there that we want, including the girls," Harry went on to explain further.

Niall raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Are you going to let them be there when the baby's born?"

"We're going to give them a choice. They can stay while I'm delivering or the centre has a playroom all set up where they can go if they don't want to be there."

"Awesome. That sounds perfect."

"I hope it will be," Harry stated.

"You will call when you go into labour, right?" Niall checked. "I'm happy to come mind the girls."

Harry smiled at Niall's thoughtfulness. "That would be great. They love you so much."

Niall regarded Lily and Sophie affectionately as they raced from the seesaw back to the swings. "I love them, too. You guys have done such a terrific job with them."

"Thanks," Harry said. "We couldn't have done it without everyone's help, though."

They let the girls play a little bit longer, then, when it got closer to lunchtime, they suggested they go home via Nando's. Some takeaway would be the perfect accompaniment to some movie watching.

The first contraction hit while they were waiting in a queue to place their order. Harry gasped and put a hand on his belly.

"You okay there, Haz?" Niall asked, immediately concerned and already reaching for his mobile.

Harry pulled in a deep breath. "I'm fine. Just some Braxton Hicks."

"Like you had in Hong Kong?"

Harry nodded. "I had them a few weeks ago, too. No big deal. They went away in less than an hour last time."

Mollified, Niall pocketed his phone again and moved up in the queue.

Another contraction hit as they were waiting to the side for their order. The contraction didn't seem any stronger than the first, so Harry just winced through the pain, gripping his stomach for support.

The girls were, thankfully, oblivious, excited by being at Nando's. They loved Nando's, but were only ever allowed to have it when Niall was around. Harry tried to keep a pretty healthy household, and that meant not a whole lot of fast food. Niall, however, noticed Harry's pinched face. "You sure you're okay?"

Harry waved him off. "I'm fine."

There was a contraction on the walk back to their flat, then one more as they were getting out plates and silver to eat. Harry worked hard to minimise his reaction to them each time so as not to frighten the girls.

Lily was allowed to choose the first movie, with the understanding that Sophie got to choose the second. Lily chose _The Incredibles 2_. Harry gave them permission to sit on the floor to eat, and he and Niall shared the sofa.

When the contractions continued even after he'd finished eating, Harry decided that maybe if he tried to meditate or lay down, the contractions would dissipate. He asked Niall if he could keep an eye on the twins for a little while, and when Niall readily agreed, Harry worked his way upstairs to his and Louis' bedroom.

He grabbed his yoga mat from the closet, lit a few candles, and set his iPod on its dock. As a vanilla aroma filled the room and soft music floated from the dock, Harry settled cross-legged on the mat. Closing his eyes, he tried to focus on a mantra, hoping to calm himself and stop the contractions.

Thirty minutes later, the contractions had not stopped. Instead, they had gotten a good bit stronger and slightly closer together, about eight minutes apart by Harry's calculations. Reluctantly, Harry accepted that he might actually be in labour. He allowed himself a moment of panic. It was a month too early, Louis wasn't even home, and mentally, he wasn't quite ready yet for another long, drawn-out labour like he'd experienced in Dubai. Then he remembered he'd be at the birthing centre this time, and the thought of that peaceful environment calmed his nerves.

Steeling himself for what was likely ahead of him in the hours ahead--ready or not--Harry got himself off the floor and headed back downstairs to collect his phone and ring Louis. He went into the kitchen to place his call, not wanting the twins to overhear.

Louis picked up straight away. "Harry? Everything okay?"

Harry sighed, hating to pull Louis away from his meeting. "I think I'm in labour."

"Seriously?"

"I'm afraid so. I've been having contractions for a couple hours now. I thought they were more Braxton Hicks, but they're getting stronger and closer together," Harry reported mournfully.

"I'm leaving right now," Louis declared.

"Please don't kill yourself rushing home," Harry begged. "Last time I was in labour for twenty hours, remember? We have plenty of time."

"Right," Louis said. "I won't break any traffic laws."

"I'll have everyone ready to go to the birthing centre as soon as you get here," Harry told him.

"I'm on my way to the car now," Louis stated; Harry could hear Louis' footsteps echoing in the corridor over their phone connection. "See you soon, love."

Harry ended the call, then paused to deal with another contraction before going into the lounge to attract Niall's attention. He tapped Niall's shoulder, and when Niall twisted his head to look up at Harry, Harry pointed toward the kitchen to indicate he wanted a private word. They both checked that the girls were still entranced with the movie, then Niall followed Harry out of the room.

"What's up?" Niall inquired. "Everything okay?"

Harry broke the news succinctly. "I think I'm in labour."

"You're what?" Niall squawked.

"Shh!" Harry held a finger up to his lips. "Louis' on his way home, but I don't think we need to say anything to the girls before he gets here."

Niall looked worriedly down at Harry's swollen belly. "You sure he'll make it in time?"

"You were in Dubai," Harry reminded him. "I was in labour for twenty hours. There's plenty of time. As soon as Louis gets here, we'll go to the birthing centre."

Niall heaved a sigh of relief. "Okay."

"Can you hang with the girls? I'm just going to go back up and quick pack a bag," Harry said.

"Sure. Do what you need to do," Niall replied.

As Niall returned to the lounge, Harry slowly made his way back upstairs to retrieve his favourite overnight bag. He stuffed it with the things he anticipated he might need--including some candles and matches, his iPod, and the lists of names they'd been keeping on their respective night stands--then lay down on the bed to wait for Louis to get home.

The contractions were now about six minutes apart, but Harry wasn't panicked. He assumed this might bode well for a shorter labour, perhaps half the time he'd had with the twins; he could handle that. He just worked on breathing through each contraction and keeping himself as calm as he could.

Almost thirty minutes after they'd spoken on the phone, Louis burst into their bedroom. "Harry?"

Harry was in the middle of a contraction, but when it was over, he pushed himself up onto his elbows. "Louis! Thank God you made it."

"Niall's getting the girls ready to go," Louis announced, moving to Harry's side. "Do you need any help?"

"I think I can get myself up," Harry responded, grunting as he levered himself into a seated position. "I packed a bag; it's by the door. Can you grab that?"

"Sure." Louis went to pick up the bag.

The moment Harry stood, a stronger contraction than any he'd felt yet that day washed over him and as he bent over in pain, he felt a rush of liquid leave his body. What was more, he felt the baby drop. "Louis!" he cried softly.

Louis had just gotten his hand on the bag handle, but he dropped it like a hot potato when Harry spoke. He spun back around to face his husband. "Harry?"

"My water broke," Harry announced, his voice tight as the intense contraction wore on.

Clearly remembering Dubai and the length of time between Harry's water breaking and the twins' appearance, Louis did not immediately panic. "Okay. Let's get you changed and we can get going here."

Harry nodded, the contraction coming to an end.

Louis went to their chest of drawers to find a pair of paternity joggers for Harry to change into. Once he found a set, he sidled up to Harry.

Harry was just about to lift his shirt so Louis could get to the waistband of his sodden joggers when another contraction hit, and the baby dropped even further. He screamed this time, the pain was so overwhelming.

"Harry?" Louis' voice was laced with alarm at hearing and seeing his partner in such agony.

Harry shook his head violently. "I don't think we're going to make it to the centre. Baby's coming now."

"Now?" Louis repeated incredulously. "As in here? Now?"

"Now," Harry said again, this time through clenched teeth. "Right now."

"Are you sure?" Louis asked, not quite ready to believe what was happening.

Harry levelled him with a scathing look.

"Shit!" Louis dropped the joggers in his hand. He pulled in a deep breath and forced the panic down so he could focus on what he had to do to help Harry. "Let's get your joggers off."

Harry managed to pull his top off, and then Louis was able to yank down Harry's joggers in one go. He tossed them to the side. "Do you think you can get on the bed, or do you want to be on the floor?"

"Bed," Harry replied just before being seized with another contraction which forced the baby farther down still. Aware that the girls were in the house, he tried to contain his urge to scream again, but it was becoming increasingly difficult.

Louis held Harry's hand as the contraction passed, then helped him sit on the end of the bed. Harry lay down and backed up only far enough to spread open his legs and put his heels on the edge of the bed. 

It was at this point that Niall came upstairs to see what was taking his friends so long. He took one look at Harry on the bed and, face falling ashen, turned around to look at the hallway instead. "Holy hell!" he exclaimed.

Ignoring Niall for the minute, Louis drew his mobile from his pocket. "I'm calling my mum." He was suddenly extremely grateful that his mother was a midwife.

Harry started to cry. "My water birth…."

"I'm so, so sorry, baby," Louis soothed as the phone rang. "We could go try the tub…."

Harry gave a violent shake of his head. "No time."

Jay picked up on the fifth ring. "Louis. Hello," she greeted him brightly.

"No time, Mum. Harry's having the baby," Louis told her quickly, setting the phone on the floor before putting her on speaker and telling her so.

Jay sounded surprised as she questioned, "You're at the birthing centre? Baby early?"

"No, we're at home," Louis informed her. "We're not making it to the centre. Baby's coming now."

Jay seemed to get it. Her tone was firm as she said, "Okay, Louis, Harry, calm down. It's all going to be fine."

Harry stopped crying to scream as another contraction assaulted him; he was no longer even remotely concerned with trying to keep quiet. When the contraction was over, he caught his breath to say, "I want to push, Lou. I _need_ to push. Can I? Please?"

"Can you hold on just a moment, babe? I want to make sure we're all ready."

Harry offered a small nod, closing his eyes to try to combat the pain.

"Mum, what do I do?" Louis prompted her, waving his hand around like she could see him wanting her to hurry this along.

"Is anyone else there? Where are the girls?" Jay asked.

"Niall's here," Louis replied.

At the sound of his name, Niall piped up from the hallway. "I told them to stay put downstairs. What should I do?"

Jay clearly heard him. "Niall, get Louis some clean towels. Louis, you need to wash your hands as quick as you can."

Louis put a hand on Harry's knee. "Be right back."

Harry gazed wearily into Louis' eyes and nodded acknowledgement of Louis' promise before closing his eyes to centre himself again.

Louis speed washed his hands, then returned to his husband, who was in the throes of another contraction. His eyes were still closed, and his face was contorted in pain. Louis couldn't even imagine how difficult this was to go through for Harry, and he wished mightily there was more he could do for him.

"Lou!" Niall called. Louis looked over his shoulder at where Niall was thrusting a small pile of towels through the door while carefully staying in the hallway where he couldn't see.

Louis left Harry one last time to grab the towels. "Keep the girls distracted?" Louis requested of Niall. "This is probably going to be messy, and they don't need to be in here."

"I'm on it," Niall vowed. "Should I tell them Harry's having the baby?"

"Go ahead, but try to keep it light," Louis requested, sad he couldn't be the one to tell them, but as Harry had pointed out, there was no time. He was just about ready to dismiss Niall when one more thing suddenly occurred to him. "Can you ring 9-9-9 and have them send an ambulance?"

"Sure thing," Niall agreed, already yanking his mobile from his pocket.

As Niall ran back for the stairs to make his call and attend to Lily and Sophie, Louis positioned himself at the end of the bed yet again, dropping the towels on the floor next to him. He arrived just in time for another contraction to come over Harry, causing Harry to scream at the top of his lungs. Louis checked between Harry's legs and gasped. "Shit! The baby's head is crowning!" No wonder Harry had screamed so loudly. The baby was forcing his or her way out, with or without Harry's help.

"Okay, Louis," Jay said calmly. "I want you to put two fingers gently under the baby's head. As Harry pushes, guide the baby's head out."

Louis hauled in a deep breath and stuck his first two fingers gingerly under the head covered with hair as dark as Lily and Sophie's had been when they were born.

"Harry, darling, when the next contraction comes, I want you to push hard, okay?" Jay commanded.

"Push? Push now?" Harry questioned, tears running down his cheeks. "I didn't push for the heads last time."

"This one's coming too fast," Jay countered firmly. "You need to push."

Not two seconds later, Harry was beset with a strong contraction. He screamed as he went ahead and pushed as hard as he could.

Louis kept his fingers under the baby's head as it emerged from Harry's body. "Almost there, Haz," he said supportively.

The next contraction came quickly, and Harry's face showed the effort he was putting into pushing. His eyes were closed, and his chin was tucked into his chest. His hands were on his thighs, holding his legs open.

Louis concentrated on guiding the baby's head out. Harry cried out at the moment the head popped out completely.

"Head's out," Louis declared for his mum's benefit.

Harry was panting above him, obviously already exhausted by this whole ordeal.

"Okay," Jay said, "you need to check if the cord is wrapped around the baby's neck."

Louis looked, and the cord was, indeed, laced around the baby's tiny neck. "It is," he reported, terror seeping into his voice at the thought that the cord might strangle the baby before he or she could even be born. "What do I do?"

"It's okay, Louis. You just need to gently ease the cord over the baby's head," Jay directed. "You can do it. Nice and easy."

Harry had begun to cry in earnest once more at this development. "Louis?"

"It's going to be okay, Harry," Jay assured him over the phone. "This is very common, and Louis' going to take care of it. Don't push again, though, until he has it sorted."

Louis hauled in another deep breath and took hold of the cord. As his mother had directed, he gently pulled the cord away from the baby's neck and up and over its head. "Got it," he proclaimed, cradling the baby's tiny, freed head in his hands.

"Excellent," Jay praised.

Harry's cries slowed down just a little in relief, but the relief only lasted seconds as another contraction came over him, and his cries turned into one loud scream.

Speaking loudly, Jay continued to guide her son and son-in-law. "Harry, one more push for the shoulders now. You remember this part. It's almost over."

Harry nodded and looked down at Louis, meeting Louis' gaze.

"One more push, Haz, and the baby'll be here," Louis encouraged, still gently holding the baby's head in his hands.

Harry visibly collected all his strength, leaned forward, and pushed, pushed, pushed. The baby's shoulders popped out, and the baby slid out of Harry and silently into Louis' waiting arms.

Louis was completely overwhelmed with joy as he announced, "It's a girl!"

Harry fell back onto the bed crying softly as Jay went on, "Louis, you need to sweep her mouth and under her nose."

Cradling his newborn daughter's body in his left arm, Louis used his right index finger to gently clear her mouth and nose as his mum had indicated. Even once Louis had finished, she still remained quiet.

Panic returned to Louis with a vengeance. "She isn't crying." He looked up to find Harry regarding him with horrified eyes.

"Rub her back," Jay ordered, adding, "Be firm."

Louis was swift to turn the newborn over and begin rubbing up and down her back with vigour, ignoring that she was still covered in both blood and amniotic fluid. He'd made three passes when she finally gasped and began to cry. Louis and Harry both sobbed right along with her in relief.

There was an obvious smile in Jay's voice as she said, "That sounds wonderful. Now you can clean her off, Lou."

Louis grabbed one of the towels Niall had brought in and cleaned the baby off. He was almost finished when Harry screamed again, albeit at a slightly lower volume than earlier in the delivery. Louis' attention was instantly back on his husband. "Harry?"

"Contraction," Harry said succinctly.

"That'll be the placenta," Jay concluded sagely. "Louis, hold the cord and pull gently as Harry pushes the placenta out."

Louis dropped the towel he'd been using and balanced the baby in one arm while he grabbed the cord with his free hand. "Go ahead, Haz. Push."

Harry summoned just enough energy to deliver the placenta with two big pushes, just like last time. When he was done, he collapsed back onto the bed, worn out from all his efforts.

"All out," Louis told his mother, wincing as he moved the organ to a towel to minimise the mess.

"Is the baby clean?" Jay wanted to know.

Louis collected a new towel and finished cleaning the baby's legs as she squirmed and cried in his arms. "She is now."

"Don't try to cut the cord, but you can go ahead and let Harry hold her until the paramedics get there," she dictated.

Louis carefully lifted the baby up and over Harry's still-swollen belly to rest her on Harry's chest. Just as her sisters' had, the second her tiny body connected with Harry's, the newborn's cries petered out.

"There you are, Peanut. You just couldn't wait, could you, my little one?" Harry whispered, tenderly cupping the back of her head with his hand.

"Congratulations, you two," Jay said, causing Louis to jump. He'd forgotten they were still connected.

"Thanks for everything, Mum," Louis offered his sincere gratitude.

"I'm glad I could help," she returned. "For when the paramedics ask, she was born at 2:11 p.m. Dan and I will bring the girls and Ernest down tomorrow morning to meet her in person."

"We'll look forward to it. Bye, Mum."

"Bye bye, loves." Jay signed off the call.

Louis took a moment to return his mobile to his back pocket before settling back onto his haunches to catch his breath and calm his nerves.

Just then there was a shuffling sound outside the bedroom door. Louis turned his head in time to see Niall peek around the door, shielding his eyes lest he see anything gross. "How're you guys doing in there? We heard a baby crying."

"Give us one minute," Louis requested.

Louis proceeded to help Harry get his feet to the floor and some pillows behind his back. He stole a quilt from where it lay on the back of the easy chair in the corner and laid it across Harry's lap, covering the placenta and the bottom half of the cord connecting the baby to the placenta. Once he was sure there was nothing there to freak the girls--or Niall, for that matter--out, he sat himself next to Harry and called, "Come on in!"

Niall had one hand on each of the twins' backs as he guided them into the room. "I left the front door open for the paramedics," he remarked.

Louis smiled gratefully. "Thanks."

The girls' eyes were wide as they entered the bedroom, and their steps were hesitant enough that it was clear Niall was pushing them forward, albeit gently.

"It's okay, girls," Louis encouraged them. "Come meet your sister."

"We heard Daddy screaming," Lily confessed as she inched closer to where Harry was.

"I'm fine," Harry assured her. "It just hurt a little getting the peanut out."

"It sounded like it hurt a lot," Sophie observed, causing the adults to laugh. Sophie's face adopted a look of indignation at being mocked.

"It did, Soph," Harry told her, not wanting to lie. "But I'm fine. I promise."

Lily and Sophie inched a little closer, Niall staying close behind them. Curiosity finally got the better of the girls, and they sidled right up to Louis to peer at the baby resting on Harry's chest. Said baby was quiet now, breathing heavily after her quick journey into the world, her eyes closed and her hand clutching at the bottom of Harry's neck.

"She's so tiny!" Lily exclaimed.

"She's actually a little bit bigger than you were when you were born," Louis informed her.

"She's beautiful, lads," Niall complimented.

"Thanks," the baby's fathers said simultaneously.

"What's her name?" Sophie wondered aloud.

That turned into a conversation for another time when two paramedics--one man and one woman--came to the bedroom door. "Mr. Styles? Mr. Tomlinson?"

Louis stood to wave them in. "I'm Louis Tomlinson, this is my husband, Harry Styles."

The female paramedic smiled. "I'm Alice, and this is my partner Oliver. And that must be the little one who decided to make a speedy entrance." She pointed to the baby nestled under Harry's chin.

"It is," Louis confirmed. He looked down at his watch. "She was born less than ten minutes ago. At 2:11."

"Excellent," Oliver said. "And has the placenta been delivered?"

"Yes, but it's still attached to the baby," Louis reported. "My mum's a midwife, and I put her on speaker while Harry delivered the baby. She told me to leave everything connected."

"Perfect. Now, might we clear the room for a moment while we get Harry and the baby ready for transport to hospital?" Oliver asked, looking significantly at the twins before collecting a black bag and a cooler he'd set down in the hallway.

"I'll take the girls downstairs," Niall offered. "Come on, Lils, Soph. The paramedics need to get your daddy and baby sister ready to go to hospital."

"Why do you have to go to hospital?" Sophie looked worriedly to Harry.

"So the doctors can check to make sure the baby and I are fine," Harry answered. "It's okay, Sophie. Go with Lily and Uncle Niall."

Niall ushered the girls out of the room so the paramedics could get to work. Oliver threw the quilt to the side as Alice clamped off the umbilical cord, inviting Louis to cut the cord as he'd been able to do with the twins. Oliver then placed the placenta in the cooler and wrapped the baby up in an aluminium warming blanket, though he replaced her right on Harry's chest once she was all bundled up.

They brought a stretcher in, then, and moved Harry easily from the bed to the stretcher. They entreated Louis to carry the bag and the cooler as they carefully manoeuvred the stretcher down the stairs.

Niall was waiting with Lily and Sophie in the lounge when the paramedics got the stretcher to the front door. "I'll bring them right behind you in my car," he said.

"We want to go with Daddy and Papa!" Sophie declared, her voice wobbly.

Louis put the bag and cooler down long enough to pull the twins into his arms to talk to them, even as the paramedics continued to tote Harry's stretcher outside. "I'm going to go with Daddy and the baby in the ambulance, but it would be pretty tight with you guys, too. Niall is going to follow the ambulance, though. You'll be right behind us. Okay?"

The girls offered reluctant nods. Louis kissed each of their foreheads. "Daddy and I love you both so much. Be good for Uncle Niall, all right?"

Lily and Sophie both nodded again, and Louis stood to retrieve the bag and cooler he'd been charged with. It occurred to him that what he did not have was Harry's bag. "Ni, can you guys bring the bag Harry packed? It's by the door of our bedroom."

"Sure thing. Go," Niall urged.

Oliver and Alice were securing the stretcher in the back of the ambulance when Louis arrived. He handed the bag and cooler to Alice, then jumped into the back next to Harry as Oliver moved around to the front of the ambulance to drive.

As the ambulance started off down the road, Louis reached for Harry's hand. "How're you doing, love?"

"I'm knackered," Harry admitted. "That was really fast, and it hurt twice as much as it did last time."

Louis reached over to run the back of his index finger down their baby daughter's cheek. "She didn't give you any time to get prepared, did she?"

"She's okay, isn't she?" Harry asked, brow furrowed.

"She's just fine. She's beautiful, Haz," Louis replied, moving his finger to smooth Harry's worry wrinkles. "Look, she has your nose, just like Lily and Sophie. The same hair as they did, too."

Harry smiled. "And she's a girl, too. Just like you thought."

"My mum had five girls and two boys," Louis pointed out with a grin. "The odds were in my favour."

"Speaking of mums," Harry said. "Can you call mine?"

"Absolutely." He withdrew his mobile and speed-dialled Anne, putting her on speaker just as he had his own mum.

"Louis. Hi!" she answered brightly.

"I'm here, too, Mum," Harry interjected.

"Hi, H. What's up?"

Louis nodded and gestured to Harry that he should deliver the news. "It's a girl!" Harry announced happily.

"Wait, what? The baby's been born?" Anne inquired, clearly puzzled.

"Less than an hour ago, at home," Louis responded. "We're on the way to hospital now."

"Harry, are you okay?" Anne immediately asked. She didn't give them any time to answer before adding, "Is the baby okay?"

"We’re both just fine, Mum. Apparently, she just couldn't wait any longer to join us."

"Then I'm so excited for you," Anne continued, a smile in her voice. "I can't wait to meet her."

"Why don't you call my mum and coordinate?" Louis suggested.

"That's a great idea. I'll call her right now," Anne decided. "Take care of my boy and my new granddaughter, Louis."

"I shall," Louis vowed.

"See you soon, then," Anne said by way of goodbye.

Less than two minutes after signing off with Anne, they arrived at St. Luke's, the same hospital Harry had been in when he'd gotten too dehydrated. Louis climbed out first and watched while Alice and Oliver transferred Harry and the baby onto a waiting gurney. The hospital staff took over, rushing their new patients into the building. Louis was in the process of following them when he heard someone call his name.

Niall must have done a spectacular job of keeping up with the ambulance, because Louis hadn't even made it into the building before the twins were attaching themselves to his legs and Niall was not far behind them.

"Wow, that was fast!" Louis observed with a grin.

"I think I was a race car driver in a past life," Niall remarked.

"C'mon, then," Louis said, taking each of his girls by the hand. "Let's catch up to Daddy."

They took Harry and the baby directly up to the Maternity/Paternity ward, and Niall kept the twins outside in the hall while Louis went in the room with Harry.

A nurse who introduced herself as Miranda took the baby from Harry before he was even moved onto his hospital bed. When Harry and Louis looked at Miranda with sadness, she explained, "We just want to check her out, weigh her, do a few tests, make sure she's okay. We'll get her back to you in no time."

Harry and Louis smiled and nodded their understanding, watching her with longing as she carried their newborn out of the room.

Another nurse--this one called Callie--appeared on Miranda's heels. Callie helped Harry into a hospital gown and then into the bed. Once he was settled, she told him a doctor would be in to see him shortly, and she left.

Sure enough, a doctor came in the room just a minute after Callie left. "Hello, gentlemen. I'm Dr. Parker." He walked over to shake first Harry's, then Louis' hand. "I hear you had a little one who didn't want to wait to get to hospital to be born."

"You heard right," Harry told him ruefully.

"It's Mr. Styles, correct?" the doctor checked, meeting Harry's gaze before turning to Louis. "And Mr. Tomlinson?"

The couple nodded. Louis corrected, "Louis and Harry," pointing to himself and Harry in turn so as not to risk confusing Dr. Parker.

"One Direction, yes?" the doctor went on. "My daughter is a huge fan."

Harry and Louis smiled and nodded. It was nice to know they still had fans, even though they weren't nearly as visible as once they were.

"Are those beautiful twins outside the door yours?" Dr. Parker asked.

"They are," Harry confirmed proudly.

"They look anxious to be reunited with their dads, so I just want to give Harry a quick exam, make sure nothing's amiss after your surprise home delivery, then everyone can come in. Is that all right?"

"Sure," Harry allowed, already pushing down the sheet Callie had covered him with.

As he slipped on some surgical gloves, the doctor informed them, "I examined the placenta before I came in, and it looks intact. Who actually delivered the baby?"

Louis raised his hand. "I did."

Dr. Parker smiled. "You did a great job. I peeked at the baby, too, and she looks like she's in great shape."

Louis smiled widely. "Thanks. It all happened really fast."

After that, Dr. Parker was quick in his ministrations. He declared that everything looked just fine, no tears or anything from the speedier-than-expected birth. He explained that he would have a nurse put in an IV of Pitocin (to aid with shrinking Harry's belly; Harry remembered this from after he'd delivered the twins, too), but otherwise no other immediate aftercare was necessary. Harry and Louis just needed to let a nurse know if there were any problems. Dr. Parker then excused himself to go on his rounds, though not before telling Niall, Lily, and Sophie they could finally come in the room.

Lily and Sophie raced into the room, while Niall followed at a more leisurely pace.

Lily stopped short right in front of where Louis sat in a chair set at the head of Harry's bed. She turned in a full circle on her heel, a confused look on her face. "Where's the peanut?" she inquired, looking from Harry to Louis and back again.

Louis pulled Lily onto his lap. Sophie instantly wanted to be there, too, of course. As they situated themselves one on each of their papa's knees, Louis informed them, "A nurse took her so they could give her a check-up, make sure she's healthy."

"But we want to see her now," Sophie whined.

"She'll be back soon, girls," Louis assured them. "You need to be patient."

Callie came in at this juncture to set up Harry's IV. She patiently explained everything she was doing for a curious Lily and Sophie. Once it was all set up, she left to tend to other patients.

Callie had been gone less than a minute when Miranda returned with a small bundle wrapped in a clean white blanket. "Here she is!" the nurse announced brightly.

Lily and Sophie wasted no time in holding out their little arms in hopes of holding the baby. Louis gently lowered their arms, however. "Let Daddy take her first, okay?"

The girls let out joint dramatic sighs, but they nodded agreement.

"She's perfectly healthy," Miranda reported as she passed the baby into Harry's eager arms. "She weighs six pounds, nine ounces, and she passed all of our initial tests."

"Excellent," Harry said. Not that he didn't trust Louis, but it was nice to hear she was fine from a professional. "Thank you."

"Are you going to breast feed or bottle feed?" Miranda inquired.

"Bottle," Harry replied. It had worked for the twins, it would work with this one.

"I'll get one ready, then." Miranda left the family (and Niall) to get to know their new little girl.

Lily and Sophie climbed up on the bed to get a better look at their baby sister. They were thrilled to discover that she was awake now, her blue eyes blinking as she took in her surroundings. She was completely clean now, and the nurses had put a diaper on her, as well as a sweet little pale yellow hat.

"Haz, she really is gorgeous," Louis commented. "I can't believe she's here already."

"Me, neither," Harry concurred, still in shock that he'd started the day thinking this part was still weeks away.

Niall was in the process of snapping some pictures when Sophie piped up, repeating her question from before Oliver and Alice had arrived. "What's her name?"

Harry looked over at Louis and shrugged. "We haven't picked one yet."

Louis grinned. "I guess we can't keep calling her Peanut, can we?"

"She is not a peanut anymore," Lily stated seriously. "She is a baby."

Harry and Louis chuckled. "You're right, Lil," Harry told her. He turned to Louis. "Our lists are in the bag."

Louis retrieved the lists from the bag he'd brought from home, then settled back into his chair. Harry held Louis' list, and Louis held Harry's. Louis gave the girls a serious look. "I think I'm going to need your help. Are you up for that?"

The girls immediately nodded.

"I thought I had a little more time," he looked meaningfully in the direction of his newborn before refocusing on the twins, "so I had my list down to three girl names. Maybe you two can decide which one we use." He adjusted his gaze to Harry, now, silently checking that this plan was okay with him.

Harry smiled and nodded at the same time as the girls did.

"Okay, then, hop off the bed and come with me," Louis directed. He helped each of them slide off the bed, then led them to the corner where Harry couldn't hear or see their conversation. Niall took the opportunity to steal Louis' seat and get a better angle for baby and Daddy pictures.

Louis unfolded his list and pointed out the three names he liked best. The girls immediately picked the same one as their choice.

"That's it, then. Let's go tell Daddy."

Lily and Sophie ran back to Harry's bedside, clambering right back up next to him and their sister.

Harry gazed at them expectantly. "So, what's her name?"

"Isabelle," Lily and Sophie chorused, beaming from ear to ear.

Harry beamed right back at them. "That's perfect."

"Now all she needs is a middle name," Louis stated. "What did you like from my list?"

"I picked it out the day you gave me your list," Harry revealed.

Louis blinked in surprise. "Really?"

Harry nodded. "I think her middle name should be Margaret."

Louis instantly choked up with emotion. Margaret had been his grandmother on his stepfather's side. She had died four months before the twins were born. He had loved her dearly. "Are you sure?" he asked Harry.

"Absolutely. I won't have it any other way."

**@Louis_Tomlinson Harry, Lily, Sophie, and I welcomed Isabelle Margaret Tomlinson-Styles at 2:11 pm on 20 September 2021. All are happy and healthy! #BlessedTimesThree**

* * *

Harry and Isabelle were handed their discharge papers the morning after she was born. Unlike the twins, Isabelle weighed enough to not need to stay in hospital, and she was eating beautifully.

Lily and Sophie were allowed to stay home from school to go with Louis to pick up their daddy and sister. They had barely slept the night before owing to how excited they were about the baby finally being here.

It was all Louis could do to keep Lily and Sophie from running down the hall toward Harry's hospital room. He kept a firm hand on each of their shoulders to ensure they were walking.

When they arrived at Harry's room, Harry was sat in a chair feeding the baby. He looked up and smiled. "Look who's here, Peanut. Your papa and your big sisters."

Louis let the girls go, and they ran the few feet to Harry's side.

"Her name is not Peanut, Daddy, remember?" Sophie scolded him. "Her name is Isabelle."

"I'm sorry, you're right," Harry told her soberly. "Good morning, Miss Sophie, Miss Lily."

"Good morning," they replied in tandem.

Harry looked up at Louis. "You come to bust us out?"

Louis chuckled. "We did."

"I just started this bottle, so we need a few minutes," Harry requested.

"We can wait," Louis assured him. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore," Harry admitted. "But okay. I still can't believe she's here."

"I know. My head's still spinning," Louis said, making a circle with his head for good measure.

"Daddy, can we hold her?" Lily wanted to know, getting right up into Isabelle's space.

"As soon as she's done eating," Harry promised. The girls had gotten to hold her the day before, but he knew it would be a long time before holding her became old.

"We're going to have a full house by noon," Louis warned his husband. "Your mum and Robin are leading my mum, Dan, and the kids down, and Niall, Liam, and Zayn are all dying to meet our little early bird. Gemma's coming, too, if I read all the emojis she sent correctly. Your sister needs to learn to use her words."

"So, I should steel myself for the onslaught is what you're saying?"

Louis nodded. "Everyone's so excited."

Lily and Sophie kept a sharp eye on the baby as Harry finished feeding and burping her. They began clamouring to hold her again the moment Harry set the bottle down on the table beside him.

"Up on the bed," Louis commanded, and the twins immediately climbed up onto the bed.

"Who went first yesterday?" Louis went on to ask. "It was you, wasn't it, Sophie?"

"It was!" Lily insisted while Sophie reluctantly confirmed the fact with a nod.

Harry stood and placed Isabelle in Lily's waiting arms. "Be gentle, remember," he warned.

"I will," Lily said.

Sophie reached over to cup Isabelle's cheek. "Hi, Isabelle," she greeted the baby. Isabelle looked right up at her, making Sophie grin widely.

"You getting this?" Harry inquired, lifting a hand to imitate taking a photo.

Louis already had his mobile out and was tapping on his camera app.

While Louis took some pictures of their three girls, Harry moved around the room to collect his things, shoving them all back inside his overnight bag. He was still working on making sure he'd gotten everything when Louis helped transfer Isabelle to Sophie's arms for her turn. He took some pictures of that, too.

Finally, a nurse appeared with the paperwork they'd need to turn in on their way out, and they were free to take Isabelle home.

"Okay, girls, time to go." Louis took Isabelle from Sophie before Harry helped the twins hop off the bed.

They formed a little train out to the SUV, Harry with the twins and Louis with Isabelle. "Thank God we still had the baby car seat," Louis remarked as he strapped Isabelle in.

Lily and Sophie fought for a moment about who was going to get to sit next to the baby, but Harry intervened and did a quick eeny-meeny-miny-moe, which Lily won, and then they were able to set off for home.

Harry and Louis ended up not even chatting a little during the drive because they were too busy listening to Lily and Sophie talk with Isabelle, giving her the lowdown on everyone they knew.

"It won't be a long ride," Sophie assured the baby, leaning as far over Lily as her seat belt would allow.

"When we get home you'll get to meet everyone. Granny Jay and Granny Anne will be there," Lily informed her.

"Granny Anne makes the best cookies, but Granny Jay always brings presents," Sophie reported.

"Auntie Gemma will be there," Lily continued. "And Uncle Zayn, Uncle Liam, and Uncle Niall."

"And Auntie Sophia and Auntie Perrie," Sophie went on.

"Don't forget Lucas and Tricia, too," Lily reminded her.

"Oh yeah." Sophie checked to make sure Isabelle was still paying attention--such as it was--then declared, "Uncle Niall is the funnest babysitter."

"But Auntie Gemma lets us play with make-up and she does the best hairdos," Lily countered.

"Auntie Sophia lets us play with make-up, too," Sophie said. "And she has almost the same name as me."

"Lucas is fun to play with, but Tricia's just a baby, just like you," Lily said next. "But you have us to teach you things, and she doesn't have any sisters."

Harry and Louis had to struggle not to giggle at the girls; they knew the minute they did, the girls would stop.

"Papa has lots of sisters," Sophie told Isabelle. "Auntie Lottie, Auntie Fizzy, Auntie Phoebe, and Auntie Daisy." She pulled in an exhausted breath after issuing this list. "They're coming, too."

"Doris and Ernest are coming, too," Lily recalled what Louis had told them that morning about their impending visitors. "They're just a year older than me and Sophie." The twins had yet to really understand that Ernest and Doris were their aunt and uncle, confused by the fact that they were virtually the same age.

"Are they all staying over our house?" Lily asked, projecting her question into the front seat.

Louis shook his head. "No, sweetpea, they'll either drive back home later today or stay in a hotel."

Lily sighed with relief.

Harry twisted in his seat to meet Lily's gaze. "You don't want them to stay?"

"That's a lot of people in one house, Daddy. I don't want to share my bed with anyone," Lily stated.

Harry did chuckle at that. "Don't worry. No one's going to ask you to share your bed."

They pulled up at the house just then and piled out of the car. There were no other cars present, which meant they had just a little bit of breathing room.

As they all toed off their shoes by the front door, Louis told Harry, "Niall stayed yesterday to help me bring one of the cribs back in and set it up." They had decided not to foist the twins from the room where their Uncle Zayn had drawn them their second lovely castle on a wall, and instead planned to turn one of the guest rooms into the new baby's room. That process was not quite complete, though, as they'd thought they had a little more time.

"Excellent," Harry said, bouncing Isabelle in his arms as she began to whimper. "Did you by chance get the changing table set up, too?"

Louis shook his head. "Not yet, but there are diapers and a mat just inside the doorway."

"I'll use that to change her, then. Be right back."

By the time Harry returned with Isabelle--with a fresh nappy and a pink onesie that had once belonged to her sisters--the first of their guests pulled into the drive, honking the horn to signal their arrival.

The twins instantly recognised the car. "Granny Anne! Grandpa Robin!" they cried, racing out the door to greet them, then drag them inside.

Lily had Anne's hand and Sophie Robin's as they pulled them into the lounge where Harry and Louis sat with the baby. "Look, Granny Anne!" Lily demanded. "Her name is Isabelle."

Anne smiled, and Harry rose to hand Isabelle over. As she took her new granddaughter in hand, she met Harry's gaze and inquired, "How're you doing, baby?"

"I'm okay. Sore and still a little in shock," he replied.

"I'll bet," Anne returned. "Not really where you had planned to deliver, eh?" She bounced Isabelle as she spoke and, so far, the baby didn't seem to mind being held by someone new.

He shook his head. "She came really, really fast. It was less than three hours from the first contraction to when she was born. I had thought that I'd be in labour a little longer than that."

"And you delivered the baby?" Robin asked Louis.

Louis nodded, admitting, "Scariest thing I've ever had to do. Thank God my mum answered her mobile."

"Do I hear my name being taken in vain?" Jay popped into the room. Louis moved swiftly to grab her in a fierce hug. Lily and Sophie followed, anxious for some Granny Jay love. "The front door was open."

Directly behind Jay came Dan and all of Louis' sisters and, of course, Ernest. They all quickly surrounded Anne so they could check out the baby until it was their turn to hold her.

Harry immediately walked over to hug his mother-in-law as tightly as had Louis. "Jay, we were just talking about Louis delivering the baby. I cannot thank you enough for helping, I don't know what we would have done if you hadn't answered your mobile."

Jay blushed as she smiled. "I'm just glad you're okay and she's healthy."

Anne pushed through the crowd of relatives to hand Isabelle off to Jay. "The fruits of your labour, Jay," Anne joked.

"Hey!" Harry said indignantly. "That's the fruit of _my_ labour."

The whole room broke out in laughter.

And so the rest of the day went. Gemma and the rest of One Direction arrived with their clans, making it a very full house. Isabelle charmed every single member of her family--at barely a day old. Harry and Louis could already tell that the story of her birth would be one that would be told over and over until Isabelle was old and gray. Lily and Sophie were so happy to be showing off their baby sister that they didn't even mind not being the centre of attention for the first time in their young lives.

At dinner time, they called in for fifteen pizzas with a wide variety of toppings. There were enough people in Harry and Louis' house that when everyone was sated, there was just enough that Harry and Louis could have a small midnight snack if they wanted.

Not long after dinner, Zayn, Liam, and Niall and their respective significant others and kids left, congratulating Harry and Louis once again and promising that they were available for babysitting any time.

It was not much later that Harry and Louis gently suggested that their families go check into their hotel rooms (or, in Gemma's case, return to her flat). It was likely to be rough getting the twins to go to bed; the earlier they started the nightly routine, the better. Their families took the hint and, after offering Lily, Sophie, and Isabelle about a million kisses, they left, promising to come back the following morning for breakfast.

Finally, the brand new party of five was alone in their house together.

"Okay, girls," Louis fixed his gaze on Lily and Sophie who were leaning over the bassinet Louis had retrieved from the garage, put in the lounge, and now contained one sleeping baby. "Bedtime."

Both of the twins groaned. "We don't want to sleep, Papa," Lily protested.

Louis's face adopted a stern expression. "Well, you need to. You barely slept last night, and today was a long day."

"Can't we have a little while longer?" Sophie negotiated, looking from Louis to Harry to see who might be more receptive to their wishes.

Louis traded a look with Harry, who shrugged and gave a slight nod. Louis turned back to the girls. "Fifteen minutes," he allowed. "Then no arguments--up you go."

Lily paused as if she were trying to decide whether or not to issue a counter-offer. Louis firmed up his stern expression, and Lily nodded. "Okay, Papa."

The twins spent their entire fifteen minutes staring at the baby. Isabelle, oblivious to her sisters' worshipping, kept right on sleeping.

Harry and Louis used the time to sit side by side on the couch and catch their breath after the long day.

"I am not sure they aren't going to last longer than me," Harry remarked with a chuckle.

Louis put a hand over Harry's shoulders and pulled him in close. "Tired?" he confirmed.

"Exhausted," Harry corrected. "I think I passed tired sometime a couple hours ago."

"Maybe we should have kicked everyone out a little sooner," Louis observed worriedly.

Harry shook his head decisively. "No. It was fun having everyone here and letting them meet Isabelle. I know the girls enjoyed having everyone here, too."

"How're you feeling, other than exhausted?" Louis wanted to know.

"Okay. Still sore, but getting less sore," Harry replied. "I still can't quite believe how fast that was. I really thought I'd be in labour a lot longer than that."

"Our little speed demon," Louis commented with a grin. He sobered to add, "I am sorry you didn't get to the birthing centre, though. I know you were looking forward to the whole water birth thing."

Harry shrugged and smiled softly. "I was, but my husband delivered my baby. Can't get a whole lot more special than that."

Louis smiled right back at him. "Maybe next time…."

Harry raised his eyebrows and looked over at Louis through his lashes. "Bite your tongue. Isabelle isn't even thirty-six hours old. Let's hold off on talking about a next time."

"Okay," Louis agreed, raising his hands in surrender. "Holding off."

They spent the remainder of Lily and Sophie's extra time just watching the twins and being grateful that, so far, the girls had nothing but love for their new baby sister. They wanted to store that away for the future, when, no doubt, Lily and Sophie would be unhappy about Isabelle's presence.

Louis checked his watch periodically, and when fifteen minutes had passed, he announced, "Bedtime."

When Sophie and Lily both opened their mouths to protest again, Louis silenced them with a raised index finger. "No arguments, remember?"

The girls nodded most reluctantly, but dutifully headed toward the stairs.

"Do you want to get Isabelle or the bassinet?" Louis asked Harry.

"Isabelle," Harry responded, already moving to gather her in his arms. As he did, she mewled and opened her eyes. "Hi, there, baby girl. Sorry to disturb you. Just heading upstairs."

Harry climbed the stairs behind Louis, following him into their bedroom. Louis set the bassinet up on Harry's side of the bed, and Harry gently laid Isabelle inside. She quieted pretty quickly and fell back asleep.

Harry glanced at the end of the bed where Isabelle had been so hastily born. "Did you clean up?" he asked Louis, impressed.

"Sophia actually came over to help," Louis admitted. Cleaning was not his forte, so he'd called in reinforcements.

"Well, it looks really good," Harry praised. "Like nothing even happened."

"It looked like a tiny war zone," Louis said. "It was good to get it cleaned."

Not five minutes after they left did the twins appear in their bedroom doorway in their matching pink summer pyjamas, making them look even more identical than they usually did.

"Did you brush your teeth?" Harry inquired of them.

"Yes," they chorused.

"Wash your faces?" Harry went on.

"Yes," they chorused again.

"Put your dirty clothes in the basket?" Harry posed one final question.

"Yes," they chorused one last time.

"Then Papa and I will come and tuck you in in just a minute," Harry promised with a smile.

"We want to sleep in here," Lily demanded.

"I don't know…." Louis began, looking to Harry to determine if they could silently commit to an answer.

As he had before, Harry shrugged and nodded slightly.

"Okay," Louis relented. "Just tonight, though. Back to your own beds tomorrow night." He suspected after Isabelle woke them up multiple times during the night that they would be more than happy to return to their own room the following night.

"Yay!" the twins cheered.

"Go grab Chester and Linus, then," Louis urged them, referring, respectively, to the stuffed bear and elephant Liam had given the twins when they turned three. Neither of them could sleep without their animals. "And make sure the light's out in your room."

Lily and Sophie raced from the room, giving Louis and Harry just enough time to strip down to boxers and put on t-shirts as pyjamas.

When the girls came back clutching their stuffed toys, Harry gave the bassinet one last check--Isabelle was still out like a light--then they all climbed into bed, Lily in the middle next to Harry and Sophie in the middle next to Louis.

"I can't believe it's nine, and I'm already in bed," Louis lamented as he reached over to turn off his bedside lamp.

"Take the sleep where you can get it, Lou," Harry suggested wryly, turning off the lamp on his side.

"Good point."

"Papa?" Sophie asked into the darkness. "When will Izzy be big enough to play with us?"

"Izzy?" Louis questioned the surprise nickname.

"We decided we want to call her Izzy," Lily explained. "Is that okay?"

"Izzy," Louis repeated, testing out the name. "Haz, what do you think?"

"I think it's perfect," Harry concluded. "Especially since it comes from her big sisters."

"Izzy it is, then," Louis declared.

"When, Papa?" Sophie prompted, as he hadn't actually answered her query.

"Oh, it'll be a little while, Soph," Louis told her. "She needs some time to get bigger. You and Lily will need to be patient with her. Think you can do that?"

"Yes, Papa," Sophie vowed.

"Are you disappointed it's not a boy, Lilypad?" Harry wondered aloud.

"It's okay," Lily assured him. "You can have a boy next time."

"What is it with you and your papa?" Harry sighed dramatically. "Wanting me to get pregnant again right away."

"Well, we need a boy sometime," Lily stated matter-of-factly.

"We do?" Harry queried.

"Oh, yes, Daddy," Lily replied earnestly.

"May I ask why?" Harry tucked her in closer to him, and she curled right into his side.

"To make it even," she explained in a tone which clearly indicated that Harry should have figured this out on his own. "We have three girls and two boys."

"Ah!" Now Harry got it. "Well, we'll just have to wait and see what happens in the future. The distant future," he added.

In the next few minutes, the twins dropped off to sleep, Louis following soon after. Harry was almost out himself when Isabelle began to cry. Harry sighed and slipped out of bed to pick her up. She'd been fed not very long ago, but he could tell that a wet nappy was probably what had woken her.

He shushed her gently as he carried her into what would be her nursery to change her. She quieted considerably as soon as she had a dry nappy and a new onesie.

He carried her back into the bedroom and started to lay her back in the bassinet, but she whimpered pitifully as soon as he let go of her.

"Don't want to be all alone, Izzy?" Harry whispered. "Okay, then, if your sisters can be in our bed, I guess there's no reason you shouldn't be, too."

Harry cradled her in one arm, then slipped under the covers again, having to jostle a sprawling Lily just a little to get comfortable. He lay Isabelle on his chest, right over his still-shrinking baby bump, rubbing her back with his thumb. "It's all right, Peanut. Daddy's got you," he softly promised. She relaxed immediately and drifted off to sleep.

As he closed his eyes to try for some rest of his own, he realised that he had never been happier. He loved his husband more than he could express, the twins were happy and healthy and so much fun to hang out with, and now they had Isabelle, their sweet, tiny, precious baby girl.

If this wasn't a perfect life, he couldn't begin to imagine what was.

End (19 July 2015)


End file.
